Gulf Today

Ministry withdraws medicine batch over quality

- Iman Abdullah Al Ali, Staff Reporter

DUBAI: A batch of Calcium Gluconate 10% Ampoule, which supplies the body with calcium, will be withdrawn from both the public and private health sectors due to quality problems. The decision comes as per an order by the Ministry of Health and Community Protection. In a circular issued last Sunday the Ministry clarified it had discovered a problem with the quality of batch No. 4402461 of the product and that it contained white deposits. The product was also not registered with the drug administra­tion. As per the order, health care practition­ers will now not be allowed to circulate the batch. All pharmacies have also been asked to stop providing the batch and return it to the supplier with immediate effect. The Ministry also said in the event a product user experience­s any side effects, they must report the mater immediatel­y.

In April, the Ministry of Health and Community Protection withdrew a batch of the medical product “Dopamine HCL 200mg/5ml Ampoule” because it did not pass the product particle test.

Dopamine is a drug which stimulates the heart and has effects on the blood vessels.

In detail, the Ministry issued a circular to health-care practition­ers in the private health sector on the recall of the product of Martindale pharmaceut­icals, UK.

The Ministry confirmed that the results of laboratory analysis demonstrat­ed that the product

No. 94758 did not pass the optical particle test.

The Ministry also called upon the manufactur­er to withdraw the batch from the public and private health sectors, instructed all healthcare practition­ers not to use the batch, and asked all pharmacies to stop selling them and return to the supplier.

Recently, the Ministry of Community Developmen­t, MOCD, launched four interactiv­e channels under a new initiative named ‘Taaluf’ to provide family counsellin­g for free to all UAE community members.

In a statement, the Ministry said that the launch of the counsellin­g initiative aims to mitigate the psychosoci­al and mental health impacts of COVID-19 on individual­s during home quarantine and social distancing.

Commenting on the announceme­nt, Hessa Tahlak, Assistant Under-secretary for Social Developmen­t at the Ministry, said that the ‘ Taaluf’ family counsellin­g initiative; with its four new interactiv­e channels, promotes the stability, cohesion and coherence of the family, the foundation of any community, and seeks to achieve a beter family reality and a more beautiful social life. It focuses on interactio­n and dialogue to disseminat­e knowledge, guidance and make consultati­on easier and faster, reaching out to all members of the UAE community.

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