We’re pleased to see that the Veterinary Medicines Directorate has today published the Statement of Intent on UK Veterinary Vaccine Availability. This introduces a strategic framework, designed with industry stakeholders, which has been underpinned by regulatory analysis, industry expertise, and stakeholder input which has included RUMA CA&E and our sibling organisation RUMA Agriculture, amongst many others.
We are proud to have contributed to this strategic framework and look forward to working with the VMD on a five-year multi-stakeholder UK action plan that will turn these ambitions into reality.
The negative impact of not having access to a stable and reliable supply of vaccines can’t be underestimated and we have been working hard to raise the profile of disrupted supply in recent months. Our Vaccines survey is still open for responses and is designed to gather insights from vets, SQPs, retailers and wholesalers about the vaccines shortages that have been a growing source of concern for the CA&E sectors over recent years. The findings will be fed into the five year action plan so your feedback will really help to make a difference. Deadline for responses is Friday 26 Sept: https://forms.office.com/e/csZZEFQTut
Find out more about the announcement: Government publishes framework to strengthen UK veterinary vaccine availability
Steve Howard, RUMA CA&E Secretary General, says: “Vaccines play a key role in safeguarding the health and wellbeing of animals and limited or no supply, which is something that has been reported more frequently over the past few years across all sectors, can have widespread implications on animal wellbeing, medicines use and stewardship. This could include an increase in antibiotic use to manage conditions that may otherwise have been prevented with vaccinations; this is an area that especially concerns RUMA CA&E as we work closely with the companion animal and equine sectors to tackle AMR. Vaccine shortages could undermine the great stewardship work underway right across the sectors.
RUMA CA&E Chair, Gwyn Jones, concurs, saying: “The negative impact of not having access to a stable and reliable supply of vaccines can’t be underestimated. Our work at RUMA CA&E centres around the responsible use of medicines to protect the health and wellbeing of companion animals and horses – if vaccines supply is unreliable then this will undoubtedly have consequences and could lead to the use of more antibiotics to treat conditions that would otherwise have been prevented with vaccines. This can be a source of much worry for those in the profession who are committed to safeguarding animal health and wellbeing.”