Pharmacovigilance resources

General public and patients

Electronic Medicines Compendium (emc)
https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc
Contains up to date, easily accessible information about medicines licensed for use in the UK including:

- Patient Information Leaflets (known as PILs, Package Leaflets or PLs)

- Risk Minimisation Materials (RMMs)

- Product Information

National Health Service
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/
Health A to Z, provides information and resources on health conditions including drug treatment and associated side effects.

Medicines and HealthCare products Regulatory Agency
https://yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk/
Report suspected side effects to medicines, vaccines, e-cigarettes, medical device incidents, defective or falsified (fake) products to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to ensure safe and effective use. 

If you want to enquire about a specific medicine, you can also contact the MAH directly. OR if you want more medicine-specific information, visit the MAH's website for more information.

Medicines and HealthCare products Regulatory Agency – Email Alerts
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/medicines-and-healthcare-products-regulatory-agency/email-signup
If you want to set-up, tailor and receive email alerts from the MHRA regarding:

• Drug alerts and medical device alerts – Subscribe to MHRA's alerts and recalls for drugs and medical devices.
• Drug Safety Update – Subscribe to the Drug Safety Update, the monthly newsletter for healthcare professionals, with clinical advice on the safe use of medicines.
• News and publications from the MHRA – Subscribe to MHRA's new publications, statistics, consultations and announcements.

When Should I Worry?
http://www.whenshouldiworry.com/
'When Should I Worry?' is a booklet developed by researchers at PRIME Centre Wales, Division of Population Medicine, Cardiff University.

It provides information for parents about the management of respiratory tract infections (coughs, colds, sore throats, and ear aches) in children, and has been designed to be used in primary care consultations.

National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) 
https://bepartofresearch.nihr.ac.uk/
The Be Part of Research website has information about clinical trials and other research from several different UK registers.

General public and pharmacovigilance students

Drug Safety Research Unit / University of Portsmouth
https://www.dsru.org/pgc-pgd-and-msc-in-pharmacovigilance/
DSRU (Drug Safety Research Unit) in collaboration with the University of Portsmouth have developed flexible, accredited postgraduate awards in Pharmacovigilance. You can study for a post graduate certificate, diploma or MSc. Accredited by PIPA.

Drug Safety Research Unit – Pharmacovigilance Education & Training
https://www.dsru.org/education-training/
DSRU (Drug Safety Research Unit) provide several pharmacovigilance training courses in Europe covering a range of topics and catering to all levels. Their courses have been awarded CPD credits by the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine.

University of Hertfordshire
https://www.herts.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate-masters/pharmacovigilance
For an MSc in Pharmacovigilance the University of Hertfordshire offer a flexible programme designed to meet the needs of those in either full or part-time employment who are likely to have a spread of responsibilities. Accredited by PIPA.

The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/study/courses/short-courses/pharmacoepi-pharmacovigilance-online
The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine offer a Professional Certificate in Pharmacoepidemiology & Pharmacovigilance (30 credits). Accredited by PIPA.

European Medicines Agency (EMA)
https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/human-regulatory/overview/pharmacovigilance/pharmacovigilance-training-materials
The European medicines regulatory network has developed training materials, guidance, tools and templates to strengthen national pharmacovigilance systems and support Member States in the implementation of best practice. These materials are publicly available and can be useful for marketing authorisation holders, healthcare professionals, patient and consumer organisations and academia.

Whitehall Training
https://www.whitehalltraining.com/all-pharmacovigilance-courses
Whitehall's Good Pharmacovigilance Practice (GPvP) online training platform allows you to access courses from wherever you are. Get trained and certified at your convenience. If you are involved in any aspect of pharmacovigilance (GPvP), their four course modules will help you comply with European & US law.

Healthcare professionals

Monthly Index of Medical Specialities (MIMs)
http://www.mims.co.uk/
Compiled by UK pharmacists the MIMS is a Prescribing and clinical reference for UK general practice. It provides concise expert summaries of prescribing information for prescription products alongside a range of other quick-reference prescribing tools including comparison tables, guideline summaries, visual guides, and a constantly updated list of drug shortages.

British National Formulary (BNF) & BNF for children online
https://www.bnf.org/products/bnf-online/
BNF Publications provide doctors, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals with sound, up-to-date, and timely information about the use of drugs by including key information on the selection, prescribing, dispensing, and administration of drugs.

The Electronic Medicines Compendium (emc)
https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc
Contains up to date, easily accessible information about medicines licensed for use in the UK including:

 - Summaries of Product Characteristics (known as SPCs or SmPCs)

 - Patient Information Leaflets (known as PILs, Package Leaflets or PLs)

 - Risk Minimisation Materials (RMMs)

 - Letters to healthcare professionals

 - Safety Alerts

 - Product Information

British Pharmacopoeia
https://www.pharmacopoeia.com/
A reference tool for all individuals and organisations involved in pharmaceutical research, development, manufacture, quality control and analysis

Martindale: ADR checker
https://about.medicinescomplete.com/adr-checker/
Provides a concise clinical management advice with a severity flag system to support when managing patients with adverse drug reactions.

The Medicines and HealthCare products Regulatory Agency
https://yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk/
Report suspected side effects to medicines, vaccines, e-cigarettes, medical device incidents, defective or falsified (fake) products to the MHRA to ensure safe and effective use. 

Pharmacovigilance professionals

Associations and groups similar to the ABPI are great networking forums bringing together individuals from across the Pharma industry to provide their unique perspectives and collaborate on content which is made accessible to everyone from patients to HealthCare Professionals and from Pharma to governmental bodies across the globe.

Pharmaceutical Information & Pharmacovigilance Association (PIPA)
https://pipaonline.org/pharmacovigilance/
PIPA is a membership association for professionals working within the fields of medical information, pharmacovigilance and related functions in the pharmaceutical industry. They provide training, events, guidance, resources and networking opportunities.

The Medicines and HealthCare products Regulatory Agency
https://www.gov.uk/drug-analysis-prints
Data reports produced by the MHRA to check what side effects people have reported when they’ve taken a medicine.

The Medicines and HealthCare products Regulatory Agency
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/good-pharmacovigilance-practice-gpvp
Information on how to comply with and prepare for an inspection and links to Good pharmacoVigilance Practice (GPvP) guidelines.

The Medicines and HealthCare products Regulatory Agency
https://mhrainspectorate.blog.gov.uk/category/good-pharmacovigilance-practice/
Shares the work of the MHRA Inspectorate, by inspectors and those the Inspectorate works with.

Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS)
https://cioms.ch/pharmacovigilance/
CIOMS is an international, non-governmental, non-profit organization established jointly by WHO and UNESCO in 1949. Since the 1980s CIOMS has launched a series of Working Groups to address hot topics of pharmacovigilance. All the groups have produced valuable results in the form of published Working Group reports.

International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH)
https://www.ich.org/page/efficacy-guidelines
ICH is unique in bringing together the regulatory authorities and pharmaceutical industry to discuss scientific and technical aspects of pharmaceuticals and develop ICH guidelines. They have produced several sets of guidelines including the efficacy guidelines E2A – E2F on Pharmacovigilance, covering topics for both clinical trials and post marketing.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance
Evidence-based recommendations developed by independent committees, including professionals and lay members, and consulted on by stakeholders. The guidance includes information on recommended treatment pathways including drug therapy.

European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations
https://efpia.eu/
EFPIA represents the biopharmaceutical industry operating in Europe. Through its direct membership of 37 national associations, 38 leading pharmaceutical companies and a growing number of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with a mission to create a collaborative environment that enables our members to innovate, discover, develop and deliver new therapies and vaccines for people across Europe, as well as contribute to the European economy.