Khaberni - The Food and Drug Administration, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, has launched the pharmacovigilance guidelines and a smart application for reporting the side effects of medicines and vaccines, which contributes to improving the efficiency of monitoring and response and enhancing the community's confidence in health services.
The Head of Rational Use and Pharmacovigilance at the Food and Drug Administration, Jabir Jabir, said on Tuesday that the launch of the guideline for tracking vaccine side effects is a "qualitative leap."
Jabir added to “Al Mamlaka” channel that the Administration has been working on preparing a national pharmacovigilance guide for about two years, in cooperation with experts from the Ministry of Health, government hospitals, Royal Medical Services, and universities, noting that a training plan is currently being implemented to generalize its use among healthcare providers, especially in motherhood and childhood centers.
He explained that the Administration also launched a smart application to receive reports about the side effects of medications, which was piloted at the beginning of this year, and has so far received about 200 reports from citizens, describing this figure as "promising" considering the newness of the experience, and today the official announcement of the application was made, with plans to expand it to reach various sections of society in cooperation with professional syndicates, universities, and pharmacovigilance centers spread across the kingdom.
Jabir mentioned that the application allows users to report side effects easily and in Arabic, within a few minutes, even without internet connection, where the report is automatically sent when the network is available, stressing that the current version is designated to collect data and analyze it, contributing to monitoring the safety of medications and enhancing regulatory measures.
In terms of awareness, Jabir confirmed the ongoing partnership with the media, alongside using social media platforms to spread simple messages that help citizens use medications safely and effectively, noting that these messages are tested beforehand to ensure their clarity and ease of understanding.
Regarding future plans, he pointed out that the Administration seeks to expand its partnerships with universities and schools, where pharmacovigilance programs are now taught in a number of specialties, involving students in graduation projects and field awareness activities, in addition to utilizing student associations as supporting entities.
He also mentioned that the Administration is executing educational programs in schools covering issues related to drugs, food, and the risks of tobacco, emphasizing its openness to volunteer work, especially by students from health colleges, who can benefit from training, research, and volunteering programs to gain practical experience, against employing their energies in supporting health awareness efforts.
