Good Manufacturing Practices
Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP, also referred to as ‘cGMP’ or ‘current Good Manufacturing Practice’) is the aspect of quality assurance that ensures that medicinal products are consistently produced and controlled to the quality standards appropriate to their intended use and as required by the product specification.
GMP defines quality measures for both production and quality control and defines general measures to ensure that processes necessary for production and testing are clearly defined, validated, reviewed, and documented, and that the personnel, premises and materials are suitable for the production of pharmaceuticals and biologicals including vaccines. GMP also has legal components, covering responsibilities for distribution, contract manufacturing and testing, and responses to product defects and complaints. Specific GMP requirements relevant to classes of products such as sterile pharmaceuticals or biological medicinal products are provided in a series of annexes to the general GMP requirements.
GMP Guidance
The first WHO draft text on GMP was adopted in 1968. In 1969, when the World Health Assembly recommended the first version of the WHO Certification Scheme on the quality of pharmaceutical products moving in the global market, it accepted the WHO GMP as an integral part of the Scheme. A supplementary annex on biological medicinal products was adopted by the Expert Committee on Biological Standardization (ECBS) in 1991 and establishes the general approach to the quality control of biological medicines that include products such as vaccines, blood and blood products, antigens, cell and tissue therapies, biopharmaceutical products, and others.
More than 100 countries have incorporated the WHO GMP provisions into their national medicines laws, and many more countries have adopted its provisions and approach in defining their own national GMP requirements. The WHO GMP continues to be used as a basis for the WHO Certification Scheme and prequalification of vaccines for procurement by UN agencies
Overview of GMP Certification
GMP stands for Good Manufacturing Practice, & the term is used globally for managing the control and management of manufacturing, testing and overall quality of pharmaceutical products. It defines certain guidelines that talks about the quality assurance approach. GMP certification ensures that products are produced following the quality standard norms.
Joint Commissioner is authorized by Commissioner, Food & Drug Administration, to sign & issue the certificates under the WHO-GMP certification scheme. GMP certification deals with issues like documentation, record keeping, personnel qualifications, sanitation, cleanliness, equipment verification, sanitation, complaint handling, and process validation.
GMP requirements are not peculiar in any sense instead they are open ended and easy to implement also these requirements give liberty to the manufacturer to decide individually how to efficiently implement the necessary controls.
What is the Purpose of Goods Manufacturing Practice?
The main purpose of Goods Manufacturing Practice is to reduce the amount of risk involved in the production of pharmaceutical items. Pharmaceutical items include risks such as: (a) unexpected uncleanness in the product can badly affect the health which can further lead to death; (b) incorrect labels on containers which simply implies that patient is consuming the wrong medicine, (c) too much active or too less ingredient, (d) causing ineffective treatment or adverse effects, etc.
GMP has many authority under it such as covering all aspects of production, from the starting material, details regarding areas and equipment to the training and personal hygiene of staff. It provides the complete details regarding the procedures that yield the finished product and could affect the quality of it.
What does GMP Guidelines Directs the Certification Holders?
WHO (World Health Organization) has formed certain guidelines for good manufacturing practices. Numerous nations have defined their own necessities for GMP based on WHO GMP. Others have fit their prerequisites, for instance in the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), in the European Union and through the Pharmaceutical Inspection Convention.
GMP guidelines require a quality way to deal with manufacturing, empowering organizations to limit or eliminate instances of contamination, misunderstandings, and mistakes. This shields the consumer from buying an item which isn’t compelling or even risky.
Most GMP prerequisites are extremely extensive and open-ended, permitting every maker to choose independently how to best actualize the essential controls. This gives a lot of adaptability, yet additionally necessitates that the producer decipher the prerequisites in a way which makes sense for every individual business.
What are the Benefits of GMP Certification?
Every pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers follow GMP rules and procedures while some have created their own guidelines that correspond with their legislation.
Benefits for the Manufacturer
One of the primary benefits is significantly improved quality systems and quality compliance at the manufacturer. We have seen these improvements in the months leading up to GMP certification and continuing during the years immediately following GMP certification.
Benefits for the Customer
Customers will typically modify their oversight of manufacturers that have been GMP certified. Customers are aware that in order to be certified, the manufacturer must have systems in place and provide evidence that non-conformance and changes that require customer notification are handled appropriately. This assurance is typically not obtained through a one-day supplier audit that pharma companies carry out; rather, it is obtained as a result of thorough, multiple day audits of manufacturer as part of a certification audit program.
