The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), in collaboration with the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), conducted the technical webinar “Strengthening Medicines Quality through Laboratory Testing: The Indian Pharmacopoeia” as part of the collaborative efforts to strengthen medicines quality assurance systems and promote good practices in the Caribbean. The webinar counted with almost 100 participants from 16 Caribbean countries and territories.
The webinar addressed the importance of establishing robust post-marketing surveillance mechanisms, market control, and access to quality laboratory testing, highlighting the key role of subregional cooperation among regulatory authorities, quality control laboratories, and pharmacopeial institutions. These actions are essential to ensure that the medicines available across the Caribbean meet international standards of quality, safety, and efficacy.
The Caribbean regional context related to medicines quality and laboratory testing, was presented by CARPHA’s Medicine Quality Control and Surveillance Department (MQCSD) as the Caribbean reference laboratory and its experience in surveillance and quality control, as well as opportunities to enhance coordination among countries and leverage subregional approaches for laboratory strengthening.
One of the central components of the webinar was the introduction to the Indian Pharmacopoeia, which outlined its standards, testing methodologies, and cooperation approaches. This presentation enabled participants to better understand how Indian Pharmacopoeia standards can serve as a practical reference for regulatory authorities and laboratories in the subregion, considering that medicines complying with these standards circulate in several Caribbean countries and that there is growing interest in strengthening local production and analytical capacity.
The event also included a question-and-answer session, which facilitated exchange among participants and experts and allowed for discussion of technical aspects related to quality control, regulation, and the use of pharmacopeial standards.
This webinar forms part of the joint efforts between PAHO and CARPHA to promote the strengthening of capacities in Caribbean countries, with the aim of ensuring the quality of medicines and contributing to safer and more effective health systems in the region.
