06 Aug SAHPRA educates, informs during SAAPI Conference 2022
Johannesburg, 06 August 2022 – The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) was invited to speak at this year’s South African Association of Pharmacists in Industry (SAAPI) Conference during 03-05 August 2022 sharing vital information across core functional areas of the organisation. SAHPRA was also able to provide more awareness of their role in regulating, monitoring, evaluating, inspecting, and registering all health products within South Africa.
SAHPRA CEO Dr Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela presented insightful regulator perspectives on navigating the “new normal”. Our Regulatory Compliance Manager, Daphney Fafudi, spoke about SAHPRA’s approach to prevention, detection, and response to substandard and/or falsified medicines.
SAHPRA COO Christelna Reynecke outlined the digital journey and the system changes/improvements that is allowing the organisation to move forward in better managing queries and document management. Florah Matlala, Pharmacovigilance Manager, talked about SAHPRA’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, various vaccines that have been authorised, identified signals (side effects), to the importance of safety surveillance.
Dr Dimakatso Mathibe, Senior Manager: Medical Devices, provided an update on medical device regulations and highlighted a roadmap for the future. SAHPRA’s webmaster and designer, Ntokozo Msiza, took the delegates on a quick tour of the SAHPRA website and the various navigational changes that now allows for a more seamless user experience. Msiza also spoke about the groundbreaking Over the Counter (OTC) Medicines’ Online Directory that SAHPRA recently launched. This directory allows both the general public and healthcare professionals ease of access to information about OTC medicines.
Dr Alice Sigobodhla, Manager: Veterinary Medicines, also provided an update on veterinary medicine regulations, including a roadmap for the future.
The conference was themed “Navigating the new normal”, and SAHPRA showcased the core functions and how we are taking the necessary steps in navigating the new normal we all find ourselves in.
