The 20th Pharmaceutical Inspection Convention and Co-operation Scheme Expert Circle on Human Blood, Tissues and Cells is being held in Taipei City, the first time for Taiwan to host such an event since it joined PIC/S earlier this year.
“This is a milestone for Taiwan,” an official from the ROC Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Food and Drug Administration said Sept. 10.
“It confirms that the nation’s regulations and inspection management systems on good manufacturing practice [GMP] for drugs are internationally acknowledged and the FDA’s expertise is recognized by PIC/S.”
According to the official, the expert circle is working to enhance the consistency of GMP regulations and inspection quality of blood, tissue and cell examinations, as well as discussing and reviewing PIC/S guidance on GMP for blood facilities.
Representatives from the American Association of Tissue Banks, U.S. Food and Drug Administration and European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines and HealthCare, as well as many other organizations, will deliver speeches and share experiences on the quality and safety managements of blood, tissue and cell-related biomedical products, the official said.
Themed From Idealism to Practice, Art of management-Blood, Tissues and Cells, the event runs Sept. 9-14 and has attracted 51 health officials from 22 countries.
Established in 1995, Geneva-based PIC/S is an international pharmaceutical inspection system that develops, implements and maintains globalized good manufacturing practices and quality control systems. The FDA became its 43rd member Jan. 1, 2013. (KML-JSM)
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