IHRA launches patient safety project to prevent misuse of high-alert medication

Islamabad: The Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority (IHRA) Tuesday launched a collaborative project for patient safety with Pakistan Society of Health-System Pharmacists (PSHP), and United States Pharmacopeia (USP) to prevent loss of life due to medication errors.

Senior member of the partner organisations met with Dr. Quaid Saeed CEO of Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority (IHRA) to launch this initiative. Together, this partnership will work towards implementing the protocol agreed today for safe use of High Alert Medicines in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT). The technical protocol agreed today will be included in the health care standards in the health facilities across ICT. Dr Quaid Saeed lauded the support provided by PSHP and USP in this regard and assured that the agreed standards will be fully enforced in ICT and also be part of the training programs to be jointly conducted by the partners that IHRA offer to doctors in its jurisdiction.

The IHRA chief reiterated that this project is a great example of how collaboration and team work for positive changes in healthcare systems in Pakistan. Explaining the concept of High Alert Medication (HAM), Anila Sikandar from USP said that High Alert Medication (HAM) are those medicines that have a higher risk of causing significant patient harm due to errors either in their storage, prescribing, dispensing, administration and use.

She stressed that it was critical to have heightened safety checks against potential risk of harm that is possible from use of such medicines. Senior pharmacist Salwa Ahsan emphasised the need to encourage healthcare professionals and organisations to implement safety checks, risk mitigation and prevention strategies to safeguard patients’ life and health. CEO of IHRA expressed his gratitude to Salwa Ahsan of PSHP as well as Anila Sikandar and Dr Furqan Ahmad of USP who attended today’s meeting and for their support and contributions to this project, and hoped to continue such efforts to enhance patient safety in Pakistan in future as well.