New NHPD Director General Opens Gateway to Wellness
Keynote profiles NHP regulations, and Looks to the Future
Research is vital to effective regulation of Natural Health Products in Canada, according to Michelle Boudreau, newly appointed Director General of Health Canada’s Natural Health Products Directorate.
In her opening keynote at the NHPRS 2009 conference in Vancouver, Boudreau, a lawyer and pharmacist by training who played a pivotal role in the development of Canada’s regulatory framework for NHPs, highlighted the importance of research in an environment where many regulated products on the market have no randomized controlled trials to back them.
While the NHPD has been “doing significantly well” in processing product licensing applications, Boudreau said, the lack of research establishing the safety, efficacy and quality of products is an ongoing issue.
NHPD’s NHP Research Program
Michael Smith, NHP Research Program director for the Directorate, recapped the achievements of the program to date.
Launched in 2004, the research program was allotted $1 million to build connections among researchers, engaging as many people as possible. “Our job was to stimulate research in the community,” he said “We were the matchmaker, never the date.”
Over its life, the NHP Research Program has funded 260 projects. Many of these fed into the development of Canada’s NHP regulations. The program provided crucial, early financial support to the NHP Research Society, and continues to sustain the organization through participation in its events.
NHPRS 2009 Research Conference and Tradeshow a Resounding Success
Gateway to Wellness, the NHPRS’ 6th Annual Research Conference and Tradeshow, drew more than 200 delegates to Vancouver from countries around the world March 18-21, 2009.
The slate of top-notch plenary speakers and the scientific program of lectures in social, applied, basic and clinical NHP research garnered overwhelmingly positive response from delegates.
Four Founding Members of NHPRS Depart Board
After seven years of tireless service to the NHPRS, four founders of the Society stepped down as Directors at the 2009 NHPRS Annual General Meeting:
New Directors Join NHPRS Board
Five new directors bring fresh talent to the NHPRS. The Society welcomes:
News Archive
Gateway to Wellness Press Release,
International experts to share latest research in natural health products
Vancouver – Researchers are identifying safe and effective natural health products (NHPs) from among the thousands of choices currently available to Canadians.
Gateway to Wellness, The Sixth Annual NHP Research Conference and Trade Show, Feb. 18-21 will explore breakthroughs in understanding the factors that determine how people respond to NHPs, as well as promising treatments emerging from two of the world’s oldest medical traditions: Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Upcoming Event
The Cuban Society of Pharmacology invites you to participate in Pharmacology Havana 2010, the 4th International Congress of Pharmacology and Therapeutics.
13-16th December, 2010 MELIA HABANA HOTEL, Havana, Cuba