Madrid, September 1st 2016.- The Spanish Medicines Verification System (SEVeM) progresses with firm steps towards its definite configuration. After the constitution of the society which will manage the system on July 21st, today, September 1st, Mª Ángeles Figuerola Santos has taken office as Director General. With her, Javier Rodríguez-Carmona Velasco takes office today as SEVeM’s IT Director.

Figuerola Santos is an industrial engineer by the ICAI of the Universidad Pontificia Comillas, in the specialty of Management and Organization. During her plus 25 years career path she has held positions both at the private and Public Sectors, which she joined in 2002 as a part of the State’s Industrial Engineers Department. As a civil servant, she has held several positions related to the pharmaceutical sector, specifically with regards to the coordination of the PROFARMA Program. Her last duty was Industrial Policies Deputy Director in the Industry and SMEs DG at the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism. Before that, she worked in the European Commission’s Pharmaceutical Legislation Unit as an outstanding national expert. Within the private sector, she has had the role of Director of Quality at EUROSMC, Director of the Quality Division at the multinational company Consulting Group, and responsible of certification in the electricity area at AENOR.

Javier Rodríguez-Carmona Velasco is an industrial engineer by the ICAI of the Universidad Pontificia Comillas, in the specialty of Electronics. During his plus 20 year career path he has been linked to the setting up and execution of innovation projects with a high level of technologic content, both in the private and public sectors. His professional trajectory started in the National Aerospace National Institute (INTA), organism depending from the Defense Ministry, specifically in the Centre of Trials for Turbo reactors. Afterwards, he worked in the private sector, always in the field of engineering, as responsible of control and instrumentation systems. During the last four years, he has held the position of technical director of an entrepreneurial project related to the development of monitoring and personal security devices.

Leadership and management capabilities

With these nominations, the Spanish Medicines Verification System (SEVeM), guarantees itself the leadership and management capacities of two reputed professionals, with a wide experience both in the pharmaceutical sector as well as in technological innovation. From now on, they will have to meet a 30 month deadline so that in February 2019 this system becomes a reality, with a great technical complexity as well as with the engagement of all agents in the pharmaceutical sector: industry (Farmaindustria and Aeseg), wholesalers (Fedifar), and pharmacies (CGCOF).

In line with the requirements of the European legislation, the pharmaceutical industry will adapt its production line to incorporate in medicines packages anti tampering devices and a new bidimensional code (datamatrix) which will contain a unique and randomized serial number for each package. These serial numbers will be uploaded in an European repository and pharmacies, before dispensing the medicine to the patient, will verify the authenticity of the package through an electronic connection with the corresponding national repository. This end-to-end verification will be completed by wholesalers in cases of medicines with a higher counterfeiting risk.

The aim of the European regulation is to avoid the potential risk of entry of counterfeit medicines in the legitimate supply chain, further reinforcing to patients the full guarantees attached to medicines sold in pharmacies. Like all of the other EU Member States, Spain will adapt this European regulation, even when the current manufacturing, distribution and dispensing system implemented in Spain makes it almost impossible for counterfeit medicines to break the legitimate channel.

Further information:

Farmaindustria

e-mail: cfernandez@farmaindustria.es

Phone: 0034+915159350

AESEG

e-mail: matencio@aeseg.es

Phone: 0034915721262

Consejo General de Colegios Oficiales de Farmacéuticos

e-mail: comunicacion@redfarma.org

Phone: 0034914312560