Reporting ADR: A Step towards patient safety

In order to fight illness and lessen human suffering, medicine is essential. Pharmaceuticals certainly have therapeutic advantages, but they also carry the risk of Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs), which are undesirable side effects that can happen at normal dosages. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that adverse drug reactions (ADRs) can cause anything from little discomfort to serious, perhaps fatal consequences. Given India’s standing as the “pharmacy of the world,” it is critical to have a strong and adaptable pharmacovigilance system in place to protect public health. In India, pharmacovigilance serves as the main framework for identifying, evaluating, disclosing, and averting adverse drug reactions. It places a strong emphasis on post-marketing surveillance to guarantee medications’ ongoing safety. To better handle reporting across a large population, the program, which was first run by AIIMS, New Delhi, switched to the Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission in 2011. India’s PvPI, which is backed by WHO’s worldwide network via the Uppsala Monitoring Centre (UMC) and online resources like VigiFlow and VigiLyze, encourages medical professionals and the general people to report any suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs), regardless of how severe or unknown they may be. Through mobile applications, toll-free helplines, online forms, and support for vernacular languages, PvPI has made the reporting process easier and more accessible. In addition to improving medication safety profiles, reporting lowers treatment expenses, negative outcomes, and hospital readmissions. To guarantee the safety of medications, a culture of ADR reporting is necessary. Each report helps to safeguard lives and improve the healthcare system.