Pharmacovigilance in Australia: how do adverse event reports from clinicians contribute to medicine and vaccine safety?

Reporting adverse events (adverse drug reactions) associated with medicines and vaccines assists with identifying previously unrecognised side effects and other safety concerns. Reporting adverse events to the Therapeutic Goods Administration is mandatory for sponsors (pharmaceutical companies), and strongly encouraged but voluntary for healthcare professionals and consumers. Adverse events should be reported even when causality is uncertain, as reports may contribute to identification of a safety signal for new or uncommon events.

The Key Features of a Genetic Nondiscrimination Policy: A Delphi Consensus Statement.

Importance: Governments worldwide have become increasingly cognizant of the spread of genetic discrimination (negative treatment or harm on the basis of actual or presumed genetic characteristics). Despite efforts by a number of governments to establish regulations addressing this phenomenon, public concern about genetic discrimination persists.

Objective: To identify key elements of an optimal genetic nondiscrimination policy and inform policymakers as they seek to allay genetic nondiscrimination and related public anxieties.