UNICOM, the European Project to homogenize the indentification of medication
The coronavirus pandemic has made it clear the need to share Information, to collaborate on an international level and to establish common criteria to homogenize protocols and treatments that lead to a better overall quality of healthcare. Nevertheless, before the outburst of this crisis it was already under way the UNICOM project, which objective was to improve patient safety and achieve a better medical attention through the homogenization of the identification of medications.
According to the Spanish Association of Medications and Healthcare Products (Asociación Española de Medicamentos y Productos Sanitarios (AEMPS) which takes part of the initiative with 70 European and North-American organizations, “the univocal identification of medications is a global objective, since a product with a coinciding name may have different composition in different countries, making it impossible the administration or interchange, including in countries where that practice is allowed.”
The project will be centered in implementing the set of norms for the identification of medicial products (IDMP) of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The whole project will lead to a continuous development, proofing, implementation and publishing of those standards to be applied for regulatory purposes, of pharmacovigilance and to advance the services of cross border electronic prescriptions.
This cross border project aims to “bring down the barriers that block the free flow of detailed information and interoperability of medications all around the world, and consequently to facilitate the interchange of data between healthcare staff and patients. At the same time, it will help pharmaceutical companies requiring authorization to commercialize drugs, vade mecum publishers and clinical software developers, as well as patients and healthcare professionals”, as stated by AEMPS.
This project, launched in December 2019 has an expected duration of 4 years and a total budget of Euros 21 million.
Back to News