Quamed

22/09/2025

From September 9 to 11, 2025, we had the privilege of facilitating a World Health Organization (WHO) workshop in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, focused on capacity building in quality assurance for the Procurement of Medical Products.

Together with WHO AFRO, WHO HQ, and our QUAMED team, we worked with 25 participants from WHO regional and country offices to strengthen knowledge and skills on:

- Good Storage and Distribution Practices (GSDP)
- Product dossier short evaluation in line with MQAS requirements
- Quality assurance and risk management in medical product procurement
- Audits, inspections, and effective use of WHO tools

The workshop combined interactive sessions, practical exercises, and real-life case studies, including a hands-on GSDP self-assessment at the National Central Medical Store (CAMEPS). We sincerely thank CAMEPS for welcoming us and enabling this practical exercise. Feedback from participants was overwhelmingly positive, with particular appreciation for the practical exercises and engaging facilitation.

A big thank you to WHO for the opportunity to contribute to this important initiative. We look forward to future collaborations that will continue to strengthen quality assurance in healthcare systems.

19/09/2025

The following message is courtesy of Dr. Raffaella Ravinetto, Public Health Department, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, Belgium

12/09/2025

On Thursday, I participated in the SIMBLE stakeholders meeting on "LOCAL MANUFACTURING OF BIOMEDICAL PRODUCTS FOR CLINICAL BACTERIOLOGY IN RESOURCE-LIMITED SETTINGS” in Benin. Thanks to , and for the interesting content, the inspiring discussions and the great organisation.

Following the meeting, I met with and to discuss the costs involved in producing culture media.

12/09/2025

To those who have not yet decided, be aware that there is only one more day to apply for the Technical Deputy Director position before we close the application period!

Take a look at the current openings at quamed

03/09/2025

We are proud to share that Quamed has officially renewed its BSI Certification ISO9001 with an expanded scope. It is a true mark of trust and quality recognised worldwide. This milestone reflects our unwavering commitment to excellence, transparency, and the highest standards in everything we do.

Earning this certification isn’t just about a logo on our work; it’s about proving to our clients, partners, and community that they can continue to place their confidence in us.

Here’s to raising the bar together and building an even stronger future in global health quality assurance!

02/09/2025

WHO Medical Product Alert

Substandard (contaminated) FENTANILO HLB (fentanyl citrate) has been detected in Argentina, linked to fatal bacterial infections. Multiple lots are affected and subject to recall after contamination with Klebsiella pneumoniae and Ralstonia pickettii.

These injectable opioids pose severe, life-threatening risks, especially to vulnerable surgical and critically ill patients. WHO urges vigilance, recalls, and reporting of any suspected cases.

Full details: https://www.who.int/news/item/29-08-2025-medical-product-alert-n-4-2025--substandard-(contaminated)-fentanilo-hlb-(fentanyl-citrate)

Alert summaryThis WHO Medical Product Alert concerns six lots of substandard FENTANILO HLB (fentanyl citrate) detected in ArgentinaFentanyl citrate injections are opioid analgesics used to relieve pain during and after surgery. It is also used to reduce the rate of breathing in patients who are on a...

28/08/2025

Dear Friends,

With apologies for any double-posting, we would like to share the WHO invite for the launch of the WHO training toolkit on substandard and falsified (SF) medical products:

- When: Tuesday 02 September 2025 at 13:30h to 14:30h CET (Brussels, Geneva, Kigali, Johannesburg)

- Where: Zoom webinar

- How: register with link: https://who.zoom.us/meeting/register/ihClcVz8QpWe5M0KOxZmLA

Note that the webinar will be only in English.

With warmest greetings,

Raffaella & Belen

This comprehensive toolkit is designed to equip healthcare professionals and regulators with the knowledge and tools needed to combat substandard and falsified medical products.

28/08/2025

A recent multinational study published in eClinicalMedicine has raised serious concerns about the quality of antidiabetic medicines in sub-Saharan Africa. Conducted across 13 countries between 2020 and 2023, the DIABDAF study analyzed nearly 5,000 samples of oral drugs and insulin, with detailed testing on 1,673. Alarmingly, almost one in three medicines (32.8%) were found to be of poor quality, either because of incorrect levels of active ingredients or excessive impurities. Underdosage (19%) was more common than overdosage (8.7%), posing severe risks to effective diabetes management, while 10% contained unsafe impurity levels. With diabetes cases rising sharply across low- and middle-income nations, these findings highlight the urgent need for stronger regulation, robust quality assurance, and stricter oversight of supply chains to ensure patients have access to safe, effective, and reliable treatment.

Read more:

DIABDAF study was exclusively supported by French public grant (INSERM, AVIESAN, AP-HP, and University of Paris Cité).

14/08/2025

Job Alert – Technical Deputy Director (Remote)

QUAMED is looking for a Technical Deputy Director to lead and ensure technical excellence across our assessments, training, technical assistance, and quality assurance activities. This senior role involves managing technical staff, representing QUAMED with international partners, and driving innovation in pharmaceutical quality assurance.

Requirements:

- Master’s degree in Pharmacy, Chemistry, Biology, or related field
- 10+ years in the pharmaceutical sector, including 5+ years in managerial roles
- Strong experience in quality management systems, audits (GSDP, MQAS, GMP), and project leadership

Location: Remote

Apply here:

Job description QUAMED Technical Deputy Director (TDD) I- Background QUAMED is a non-profit organisation with as vision « Living in a world where everyone benefits from quality medicines and other health products ». The organization is a north/south network of international organisations, NGOs and...

11/08/2025

On Thursday, i participated in a meeting organised by VillageReach and ACOREP. The meeting was opened by Dr. Christian Ntumba, DG of ACOREP, and attended by more than 30 ACOREP staff members who are based all over the DRC. The objective of the meeting was to introduce Quamed Learning and the available courses. The ACOREP staff has committed to finalising the courses, and in October this year, there will be a hybrid ceremony to hand over the certificates.

14/07/2025

Congratulations are in order: GEOKIM Supplies (SEZ) Company Limited in Kenya is Quamed QCP certified!

On the 1st of July 2025, Quamed has issued certificate QCP-GSDP-EN-012 to GEOKIM Supplies (SEZ) Company Limited. They are located at Nairobi Gate Industrial Park, Unit 20, P.O Box 17646-00100, Nairobi in Kenya.

More information can be found on their website https://geokimsupplies.com/
To access their certificate, please visit our website at https://quamed.org/quality-certification-program/

We would like to congratulate the GEOKIM team with their level of compliance with the World Health Organization GSDP standards. We encourage all our members and partners to embrace GEOKIM as a supplier compliant with the WHO GSDP standards.

The full QCP GSDP audit report can be found on our database (for subscribers only): https://database.quamed.org/

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11/07/2025

The following message is courtesy of Dr Raffaella Ravinetto, Public Health Department, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, Belgium.