WHO Global Surveillance and Monitoring System for Substandard and Falsified Medical Products

Date

December 19, 2024

Category

EU Regulations, US Regulations

Description

This WHO report on the Global Surveillance and Monitoring System (GSMS) for sub-standard or falsified medical products in the period 2017–2021 provides insights, describes challenges and offers strategies and actions for preventing, detecting and responding. Access to safe, effective medical products is paramount for global health. This report describes a critical role of WHO in ensuring the quality and safety of medical products, particularly in LMIC. The report signals the alarming rise in the number of reported incidents of sub-standard or falsified medical products, including a wide range of essential medicines, such as antimicrobials, oncology medicines and vaccines. During the period covered, 877 incidents were recorded, with an average annual increase of 36.3%. The potential impact on increase in antimicrobial resistance cannot be understated.

The report highlights the challenges faced by Member States, including limited technical capacity, weak governance, deficient national reporting systems and inadequate international information exchange. It emphasizes the importance of cooperation among governments, international organizations, the pharmaceutical industry, healthcare professionals and civil society to combat this grave threat. To Know more please visit at: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240097513