GNH India clears audit to trade orphan drugs with UK

GNH India, has cleared an audit from UK pharmaceutical distribution companies. Armed with a WHO-Good Distribution Practice (GDP) certification, GNH India has entered a two-way partnership with the UK based company for the trade in life-saving drugs into their respective countries.

Through this new development, accessibility to medicines for the treatment of an array of diseases is now possible. Orphan drugs such as Ferripox which is used in the treatment of iron overload in Thalassaemia major patients; Raxone, used in the treatment of visually impaired adolescents and adults; Trientine, used to treat a rare but growing rate of Wilson’s disease and Mitocin, a drug used to treat a range of cancers are now available to the Indian population.

Commenting on this, Dr Piyush Gupta, Associate Director, GNH India said, "At GNH India, we had ensured to follow due protocol by applying and receiving the WHO-GDP certification well before hand. This has led to a high success rate in terms of clearing audits from various countries- the UK is the latest."

The WHO-GDP certification ensures that procurement, purchasing, storage, distribution, transportation, repackaging, relabelling, documentation and record-keeping practices are met with stringent protocols. Dr Gupta asserts, "When these protocols are not met, the market is flooded with pseudo or counterfeit drugs. The efficacy of such medicines is a threat to public health and safety."