Category: General News

The National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration Control (NAFDAC) in Gombe on Tuesday called
on traditional medical practitioners to register with the Agency to avoid selling unsafe medicine to the public.

Mr Gonzuk Nyor, the State Coordinator  of NAFDAC, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gombe.

Nyor said selling the products without getting them registered is an offence and the agency considered it unsafe for public consumption.

“We are advising them to come with their products so that it can be subjected to Lab investigation to verify it’s safety and to have them registered.

“If you sell products without registration, you are selling fake product because NAFDAC considers it as unsafe.

“Of course there is punishment for that, first we are going to collect the product from you and sanction you as first offender.

“But if you keep doing it, stiffer sanctions will come up and at the end of the day you will be prosecuted,” he said.

According to him, when products are registered, they would be patronized by people all over because it is safe

NAN

(FLOWERBUDNEWS) In our effort to ensure the availability of all right quality and safe products in Bauchi  state, Nafdac undertook unscheduled surveillance visit to supermarkets, markets and corner shops in the metropolis to ascertain the quality and safety of the regulated products sold in the state.

It was during the surveillance visit that one of the supermarket, Jifatu Stores located at Adamu Jumba Road was found selling items with labeling violations such as no batch coding or date markings while others were already expired.

The items include biscuits, spaghetti, macaroni, custard, flour, spices, milk, vegetable oil and mouth wash.

The violating products were mopped up and the owner sanctioned for selling unwholesome products.

The general public is therefore advised to look out for adequately labeled products i.e. they should look for the Brand name, Company’s name and address, Batch coding, Production and Expiry/ Best before dates before making their purchase from super markets to avoid consumption of any fake/ counterfeit, unwholesome and expired product, they should inform NAFDAC office on products that have any form of lapses as mentioned above.

The owners of departmental stores, corner shops and other selling points are therefore warned to desist from selling unwholesome products or face the wrath of the law.

NAFDAC will not relent in its efforts to monitor all regulated products produced or sold in the state to ensure they meet up with required standard

(FLOWERBUDNEWS)

(FLOWERBUDNEWS) National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control in Nigeria (NAFDAC) is co-hosting the second African Healthcare conference in Lagos, Nigeria, from 17 to 19 September 2019 with GS1.

NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye who announced the conference in Abuja on Wednesday, stated that  GS1 is a neutral, not-for-profit organisation that develops and maintains global standards used to improve the efficiency, safety and visibility of supply chains.

Pro. Adeyeye said that NAFDAC is co-hosting the conference as a continuum in fulfilling the Agency’s mandate that includes the control of distribution, sale and use (or supply chain) of medicines and medical products.

“This is to ensure that these regulated products are traceable with the aim of eliminating substandard and falsified medicines (SFs) in the supply chain, thus safeguarding the health of the population.The conference is supported by the World Bank, Global Fund, USAID and International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (IFPMA).

“For this conference, healthcare regulators from across Africa will join international organisations, regional and global healthcare stakeholders and prominent experts to address global health policy aspects to prevent falsifiedmedicines entering the supply chain throughimplementing traceability,” the Director-General said.

The WHO recently estimated 1 in 10 medical products circulating in low and middle-income countries to be either substandard or falsified, especially in Africa, that accounts for 42% of the detected cases worldwide.

Addressing this situation may help prevent widespread loss of life in this continent, including an estimated 64 000–158 000 avoidable deaths from malaria alone. Furthermore, falsified medication has an economic impact and results in less trust in the healthcare system.

The GS1 Healthcare conference in Lagos will provide a unique opportunity for healthcare stakeholders to discuss how to work together across Africa to achieve better traceability of pharmaceuticals and to improve patient safety. Delegates will also hear about WHO efforts to prevent substandard and falsified medical products entering the global market.

Leading experts will showcase how GS1 standards helpsupply chain partners, including healthcare professionals,implementing traceability, making sure that the patient receives the right medication.

The conference program includes presentations from senior representatives of the World Bank, USAID, the Global Fund, NAFDAC, WHO, J&J, Roche, Pfizer, AbbVie, UK Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, among others. Flowerbudnews

To ensure the availability of all right quality and safe products in the state, the agency seizes unregistered and fake products worth One million six hundred and twenty eight thousand, nine hundred Naira (N 1,628, 900.00). These products include several food products and different kind of cosmetics found in City store, Arabian Supermarket, F&S Supermarket and MRS mini mart all in Bauchi metropolis.

The need to ascertain the quality and safety of the regulated products sold in the state led to the  unscheduled surveillance visit to supermarkets, markets and corner shops in the metropolis  where the four supermarkets were found selling unregistered and expired products;

The violating products were mopped up and the owner sanctioned for selling unwholesome products.

The general public is therefore advised to look out for adequately labeled products e.g. Company’s name and address, Batch coding, Production and Expiry/ Best before dates, NAFDAC Reg. No before making their purchases from super markets to avoid consumption of any fake/ counterfeit, unwholesome and expired product, they should report to NAFDAC office any products that have any form of lapses as mentioned above.

The owners of departmental stores, corner shops and other selling points are therefore warned to desist from selling unwholesome products or face the wrath of the law.

NAFDAC will not relent in its effort to monitor all regulated products produced, consumed or sold in the state to ensure that they meet up with required standard.

By Aderogba George

(FLOWERBUDNEWS) The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has advised pharmacists and patent medicine dealers to store medicines with due care, to sustain their shelf life and potency.

Mr Venatius Ihekire, NAFDAC Assistant Director, Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, gave the advice while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on Tuesday.

Ihekire noted that the expiry period of pharmaceutical products had meaning only if the products were stored under proper conditions.

The assistant director said that otherwise, the products were likely to lose their potency before the actual date of expiry.

He said that storage of medicines and other medicine-related products was an important requirement of good pharmacy practice, to maintain their potency and ensure physical integrity of the medicines.

According to him, good pharmacy practice, in terms of handling and storage, will prevent deterioration/degradation of medicine and ascertain that the quality and safety is maintained throughout their shelf life.

He said: “Direct storage of medicine cartons on the floor should be avoided because besides being an unhealthy practice, the contents may be damaged by moisture.

“Closed shelves further prevent dust from going in, especially where most pharmacy or medicine stores are located along busy roads and streets.

“Some medicines have to be refrigerated or stored in a cool or cold place.

“Having a refrigerator or two is essential to store such medicines at temperatures mentioned on the label.’’

Ihekire noted that being diligent in storing medicines, under the required storage condition ensured that the end-user gets the most out of the medicines for the protection of their health and others.

“NAFDAC being customer-focused agency will ensure that this important function of appropriate handling and storage of medicines are kept by all involved in the finished pharmaceutical product distribution chain in the country.’’(NAN)

(FLOWERBUDNEWS) The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has been informed that United States and Indian authorities issued alert on insulin pumps manufactured by Medtronic models, Minimed Paradigm (MMT-715, MMT-712 & MMT – 722) and MiniMed Paradigm Veo (MMT – 754) for cyber security vulnerabilities that could allow hackers to remotely alter the devices and control insulin delivery.

The hackers could change the pump’s settings to either over-deliver insulin to a patient, leading to low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), or stop insulin delivery, leading to high blood sugar and diabetic ketoacidosis.

Insulin pumps are small, computerized devices that mimic the way human pancreas works by delivering small doses of short acting insulin continuously (basal rate). The device is used to deliver amounts of insulin when a meal is eaten.

The products are available outside United States.

Product information

Product name: Minimed Paradigm (MMT-715, MMT-712 & MMT-722) and MiniMed Paradigm Veo (MMT-754) Insulin Pumps.

Product manufacturers: Medtronic Model Pumps, Devonshire Street Northridge, C A United States.

 NAFDAC implores Healthcare Providers and Patients using the devices to ensure security precautions, including physically protecting the device, not sharing pump serial numbers and disconnecting the device from USB when not in use.

• Patients should consult health care provide regarding prescription to switch to a model with more cyber security protection.
• Insulin pump and devices that are connected to your pump should be kept within your control at all times.
• Patients should be attentive to pump notifications, alarms, and alerts.
• Glucose levels should be closely monitored by Patients and their healthcare Providers.
• Any unintended boluses should be immediately cancelled.

Consumers are advised to report adverse events related to the use on any of these devices to the nearest NAFDAC office, NAFDAC PRASCOR (20543 TOLL FREE from all networks), pharmacovigilance@nafdac.gov.ng  or via NAFDAC ADR e-Reporting platform available on NAFDAC website www.nafdac.gov.ng

Abuja, Nov. 11, 2019 (FLOWERBUDNEWS) The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has called for stiffer punishment for drug traffickers and importers of illegal drugs into the country.

Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, the Director-General of the agency made the call during news conference on Monday in Abuja.

She decried what she described as light sentences handed peddlers of Tramadol and counterfeit drugs, calling on the judiciary to review the penalties.

”It breaks my heart that a sentence of five years imprisonment or N250,000 fine is given to someone that is trafficking Tramadol that is killing our youths, destroying homes and casting shadows on the future of Nigeria.

“I am pleading with the judiciary to look at the consequences of narcotic on our homes and review the sentences,” she said.

She commended the Federal Government for its support in terms of equipment, adding that the agency was having it better in the present administration.

Adeyeye also said that 12 different individuals were caught with large amount of substandard and falsified medicine, some of which had been destroyed.

She said that some of them were being investigated or prosecuted, while some had been sentenced.

She disclosed  that the agency had destroyed substandard and falsified medical products worth more than N3 billion between November  2017  and November 2018.

“The agency in conjunction with the Nigeria Customs Service have began the destruction of seized consignments of substandard and falsified medical products especially Tramadol.

“A total of 24 containers of the products have been destroyed,” she said. (NAN)