§ Mr. WareingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the size of the budgets available to the Committee on Safety of Medicines in each of the years 1978 to 1987 inclusive.
§ Mr. MellorThe Committee on Safety of Medicines is supported by the Department through expenditure on staff, accommodation, office services, computing and other facilities as required: the costs cannot be separately identified. A separate budget covers expenditure on behalf of the committee on various activities including members' fees and expenses, mailing of 'Dear Doctor' letters and 'Current Problems' to doctors, dentists and pharmacists, and actions to promote adverse reaction reporting. The budgets for this area of expenditure from the 1980–81 financial year are set out in the table. Figures from earlier years cannot be identified separately without disproportionate expense.
148W
£ 1980–81 110,000 1981–82 136,000 1982–83 177,000 1983–84 224,000 1984–85 315,000 1985–86 428,000 1986–87 445,000 1987–88 460,000
§ Mr. WareingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases involving adverse reactions to medicines have been referred to the Committee on Safety of Medicines in each of the years 1978 to 1987 inclusive; and what percentage of these cases have arisen through the yellow card system in each of these years.
§ Mr. MellorSuspected adverse reactions to medicines are reported to the Committee on Safety of Medicines by doctors, dentists, coroners and pharmaceutical companies, for the most part on yellow cards provided by the committee (or standard forms for pharmaceutical companies) but sometimes in correspondence. Medical journals are also scanned for adverse reaction reports. The total number of reports received in each year since 1978 is given in the table: computer records do not distinguish the precise source of each report. The CSM also makes use of additional information from the World Health Organisation database of adverse reaction reports contributed by 26 countries, reports from pharmaceutical companies of serious reactions occurring overseas and published literature about adverse reactions.
149W
Reports of suspected adverse reactions received by the CSM Number 1978 11,873 1979 10,840 1980 10,179 1981 13,032 1982 10,922 1983 12,689
Number 1984 12,163 1985 12,652 1986 15,527 1987 16,431
§ Mr. WareingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many persons are employed full-time by the Committee on Safety of Medicines; and if he will indicate the nature of their appointment in each case.
§ Mr. MellorThe Committee on Safety of Medicines does not employ any staff directly. It is supported by medical, scientific, pharmaceutical, legal and administrative staff employed by the Department of Health, many of whom also work on other duties for the licensing authority or the Department.
§ Mr. WareingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the members of the Committee on Safety of Medicines indicating(a) their professional background, (b) whether their appointments are full-time or part-time and (c) their remuneration in each case.
§ Mr. MellorThe present membership of the Committee on Safety of Medicines is given in the table, with the members' professional qualifications and current employment. Appointment to the committee is on the basis of fees for attendance at meetings, which are held 11 times a year for one or two days. The present fee for attendance is £61 (£76 for the chairman), with an additional £15 preparation fee (£18 for the chairman).
Members of the Committee on Safety of Medicines
Professor A. W. Asscher (Chairman) BSc MD FRCP—Dean St. Georges Hospital Medical School, London
Professor S. S. Bleehan BA MB BChir FRCP—Professor of Dermatology, Sheffield University and Consultant Dermatologist, Royal Hallamshire Hospital
Profesor T. G. Booth OBE B Pharm PhD FR Pharm MCPP —Professor of Pharmacy Practice, University of Bradford
Professor A. M. Breckenridge MD MSc FRCP—Professor of Clinical Pharmacology University of Liverpool
Professor J. G. Collee MD FRCP FRCPath—Professor of Bacteriology University of Edinburgh
Professor P H Elworthy B Pharm PhD DSc MSc CChem MRSC FPS MCPP—Emeritus Professor of Pharmacy, University of Manchester and Visiting Professor of Pharmaceutica, Kings College and the School of Pharmacy, Univeristy of London
Professor A. T. Florence DSC PhD FRSE FRSC FR Pharms —Professor of Pharmacy University of Strathclyde, Dean of the School of Pharmacy University of London (From 1 January 1989)
Professor H S Jacobs BA MD FRCP—Professor of Reproductive Endocrinology Middlesex Hospital Medical School London
Dr. W. A. Jerrett MD BCh FRCGP—General Practitioner Glamorgan
Professor M. J. S. Langman BSc MD FRCP—Professor of Medicine University of Nottingham
Professor D. H. Lawson MD MB ChB FRCP (Ed) FRCP (Glasgow)—Consultant Physician in Clinical Pharmacology, Glasgow and Visiting Professor, University of Strathclyde
Mr. F. E. Loeffler FRCS FRCOG—Consultant Gynaecologist and Obstetrician at St. Mary's and Queen Charlotte and Chelsea Hospital
Professor J. O'D McGee MD PhD FRCPath MA(Oxon)—Professor and Head, Nuffield Department of Pathology and Bacteriology, Oxford
Professor A. E. M. McLean BM PhD FRCPath—Professor of Toxicology University College Hospital
Dr. Elizabeth Mayne MD FRCP(G) FRCPath—Consultant Haematologist Department of Haematology University of 150W Belfast
Professor S. R. Meadow MA FRCP DCh—Professor of Paediatrics and Child Health Leeds University
Dr. S. A. Montgomery MD BSc MB BS FRCPsych Eng— Reader in Psychiatry St. Mary's Medical School London
Professor G. Nuki MB BS FRCP (Ed) FRCP(Lond) MRCS —Professor of Rheumatology University of Edinburgh
Dr. B. L. Pentecost MD FRCP—Consultant Physician Birmingham
Professor M. D. Rawlins MD DRCP BSc—Professor of Clinical Pharmacology University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Professor M. P. Vessey MA MD FRCP FRCGP FFCM—Professor of Social and Community Medicine University of Oxford