Bogotá, October 29, 2024 (PAHO) - The Pan American Health Organization and the National Institute for Drug and Food Surveillance (Invima) of Colombia held the XIX International Pharmacovigilance Meeting and the face-to-face regional meeting of pharmacovigilance focal points (FV) of the Americas.
The event addressed and discussed the challenges and opportunities in pharmacovigilance, the most recent innovations in this field, the strengthening of regulatory systems, the preparation for future pandemics and the planning in the region of the next steps for 2025.
It was attended by health authorities and representatives of immunization programs from different countries in the region*, as well as experts from regulatory agencies, representatives of the Ministry of Health and Social Protection of Colombia, and other institutions.
Active Pharmacovigilance of vaccines, Global Smart Pharmacovigilance strategy, Regional strategy for the strengthening of ESAVI Surveillance Systems, Regulatory Reliance and harmonization in pharmacovigilance and international cooperation in good regulatory practices were some of the topics discussed during the meeting.
During the event, workshops were held such as training in signal detection skills using tools such as VigiLyze and VigiMatch, with the Uppsala Monitoring Centre (UMC) team, Risk Management Plan Evaluation (RMP), focused on risk analysis and management, and Risk-Benefit Analysis with GRADE methodology, where techniques for the evaluation of risk of bias were addressed.
The event was supported by the Uppsala Monitoring Center (UMC), the National University of Colombia and the National College of Pharmaceutical Chemists, who provided support in the organization and development of the activities.
