Govt plans central drug database
THE PLAN AT PRESENT HAS BEEN CIRCULATED AS A CONSULTATION PAPER FOR PUBLIC FEEDBACK BY NHA
The Union government is working on a central database of therapeutic drugs, including those used in alternative systems, as part of its Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) to create a recognised repository of such information.
The plan has been circulated as a consultation paper for public feedback by the National Health Authority (NHA), which is the implementing agency of the digital mission.
“Envisioned under the ambitious Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), the Drug Registry is intended to be a single, up-to-date, centralised repository of all the drugs across all systems of medicine which are approved and are available in the Indian Market. The Drug Registry application is proposed be designed using open-source technologies and will be interoperable,” NHA said in a statement on Thursday.
The consultation paper focuses only on drugs registry within the national digital health ecosystem, the process for its creation and potential benefits to various ecosystem stakeholders such as health care providers, patients, regulatory bodies, pharmaceutical companies, and other players in the pharmaceutical supply chain.
“For people, it will be quite helpful to know what medicines are approved for use as there are some banned medicines also sold on the sly in markets that most are not aware of. Also, more than allopathic medicines, it will help inform people about medicines from alternative systems as those are not regulated as effectively,” said Dr RK Singal, senior director and head, internal medicine, BLK Super-speciality Hospital.
Each section has specific open questions where feedback from the stakeholders is sought, and comments from the public are invited to ensure that the registry is designed and developed in a collaborative and consultative manner.
“Through the drug registry, the ABDM aims to provide a standardised, comprehensive set of verified data on all the approved drugs marketed in the country that would enable a more efficient regulatory process. To enable inclusivity and widen the perspectives on the table, I urge all stakeholders to go through the shared consultation papers and provide us with their valuable feedback,” said RS Sharma, chief executive officer, National Health Authority.
The concept of a registry that could serve as a comprehensive national source of legitimate data on drugs was a core part of the original National Digital Health blueprint.
A two-stage process is envisioned for the drug registry -- the initial focus will be on creating a master database of drugs in India, according to the consultation paper.