Patients should report suspected side effects

“Every report allows us to take measures to minimize risks,” says Günter Waxenecker of BASG.

“Improve the success of the treatment”
#MedSafetyWeek 2023 takes place from today until November 12. The BASG emphasized in a broadcast on Monday that every report of suspected side effects contributes to “increasing the safety of medicines for patients around the world”. In some cases, this could lead to better prescription recommendations, which could improve “patient treatment outcomes.”

Since 2006, the BASG has received and processed more than 123,034 reports of suspected side effects, in which patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals have played an important role. Addressing doctors and healthcare professionals, Waxenecker emphasized that “if you or a patient you care for experiences an adverse reaction to a medication, you should simply report the adverse reaction to us via an electronic reporting form or email. ”

100 organizations are participating
This year, a total of 100 organizations – drug regulators and non-governmental organizations – from 88 countries are participating in the global campaign. #MedSafetyWeek is led by the Uppsala Monitoring Center (UMC), the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Collaborating Center for International Medicines Monitoring, and supported by WHO and the members of the International Coalition of Medicines Regulatory Authorities (ICMRA).

Patients can voluntarily report suspected side effects; healthcare professionals are legally obliged to report these to the BASG. It does not matter whether the reporter can prove a causal relationship between the side effect and the drug. It is sufficient if such a connection is considered possible, for example because of the temporal relationship or because another cause (comedation, underlying diseases, etc.) cannot be established. You can quickly and easily submit an adverse event report electronically via the electronic reporting portal, in writing via a form or by e-mail.