August 7, 2013
Today, Dr. Jake Thiessen's independent review for the Ontario government into quality assurance in Ontario's cancer drug supply chain was made public.
Health Canada officials worked with Dr. Thiessen in his review, and look forward to reviewing his findings and recommendations. His report adds to the ongoing collaborative work being done by the federal government with the provincial and territorial governments, and their respective pharmacy registrars. Our goal is to ensure that all such activities have appropriate regulatory oversight so that quality products are produced. This will lead to greater patient safety and, ultimately, better patient outcomes.
While Dr. Thiessen's work focused on the situation in Ontario, Health Canada has been assessing the approaches being taken across the country to help inform any potential federal actions that may be needed to ensure proper oversight.
A key part of Health Canada's work to date was to provide interim direction, on April 19, 2013, to organizations involved in compounding and admixing medications. Under this direction, compounding and admixing activities could continue under one of the following three conditions:
- They are done within a hospital, meeting provincial regulatory requirements;
- They are done outside a hospital, under the supervision of a provincially licenced pharmacist; or
- They are done in a manner that meets the licencing and manufacturing requirements of the federal Food and Drugs Act.
The federal government will continue to work with its provincial and territorial partners in the coming months to develop a longer-term solution.
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