Among the emerging topics of interest to the life science industry, quality culture, quality metrics, and data integrity are in the spotlight due to changes from the COVID-19 pandemic. Regulatory authorities strive to stay on top of the latest challenges in quality assurance and compliance facing medical device and pharmaceutical firms.
Regulatory Compliance Associates® understands that data integrity is important for keeping and maintaining accurate data to protect your data’s trustworthiness. This ensures everything else built on that data is trustworthy as well. We’ll explore why quality culture and data integrity are important and what permanent changes have occurred in the wake of the pandemic.
Need help improving your Quality Culture? Contact Us Now →
How Quality Culture Is Linked to Data Integrity
It’s essential to understand the ways quality culture is linked to data integrity. Regulators have delineated a clear link between the veracity of data generated by a company and its culture. Future regulatory audits to determine an organization’s health may focus on obtaining information about the company’s quality culture and subsequent data. It’s vital to for companies to acknowledge this relationship so they can identify vulnerabilities, perform necessary risk assessments and remediate risks before an inspection.
An Increased Emphasis on Data Integrity
It’s easier to keep a vigilant eye on data when everyone works from the same locations. However, with more people working from home, maintaining quality culture practices to control data integrity is imperative and challenging. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is drawing parallels between compliance with data integrity regulations and an organization’s overall culture.
The FDA wants companies to maintain a quality culture that is integrated throughout the organization. The more developed and established an organization’s quality culture, the more reliable the data.
Ensuring data integrity compliance can benefit a company in the following ways:
- Fewer supply chain interruptions
- Less rework needed
- Reduced financial risk
- Increased compliance
- Improved operational performance and productivity
Transitions to Electronic Systems
As a result of the pandemic, more companies are switching from paper-based to electronic systems. This migration to electronic data systems poses certain challenges to any organization.
Companies need to have the necessary resources and technical expertise to make sure the electronic systems maintain data integrity concepts. Organizations must be able to provide proof of their compliance supported by an audit trail of their work.
Auditing Process Changes Resulting from the COVID-19 Pandemic
The auditing process may change in many ways as a result of the pandemic:
- Virtual audits are likely to become more common.
- Companies will need to ensure systems are secure and files are organized.
- Companies will have to maintain data integrity in their electronic systems so they can use those systems to transfer data to regulatory auditors.
About RCA’s Pharmaceutical Consulting Services
Regulatory Compliance Associates (RCA) has helped thousands of pharmaceutical companies meet regulatory, compliance, quality assurance, and remediation challenges. With more than 20 years of experience with FDA, Health Canada, EU and global regulatory agencies worldwide, Regulatory Compliance Associates® offers leading pharmaceutical consultants. We’re one of the few pharma consulting companies that can help you navigate the challenges associated with industry regulations.
Our pharmaceutical consulting firm includes over 500 seasoned FDA, Health Canada & EU compliance consultants and regulatory affairs experts who understand industry complexities. It’s a pharma consultancy founded by regulatory compliance executives from the pharmaceutical industry. Every pharmaceutical industry consultant on the Regulatory Compliance Associates team knows the unique inner workings of the regulatory process.
Client Solutions
Whether you’re in the product planning, development or pharmaceutical lifecycle management stage or need a remediation strategy for a compliance crisis, Regulatory Compliance Associates will guide you through every pharmaceutical consulting step of the regulatory process and create a customized approach depending on your product and your pharma company’s individual needs. Our regulatory compliance clients include:
- Companies new to FDA, Health Canada or EU regulations and regulatory compliance
- Start-up organizations with novel submissions to 510(k) submissions from multi-national corporations
- Investment firms seeking private equity due diligence for pre-acquisition and post-deal research
- Law firms seeking pharmaceutical consulting firm expertise in the remediation of warning letters, consent decrees, 483’s or import bans
Regulatory Affairs
Regulatory affairs is Regulatory Compliance Associates backbone. We exceed other pharma consulting companies with industry experts experienced in complexities of the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries. Our pharma consulting expertise spans all facets and levels of Regulatory Affairs, from Regulatory Support for New Products to Life Cycle Management, to other services like Outsourced Regulatory Affairs, Submissions, Training, and more.
As your partner, we can negotiate the potential assessment minefield of regulatory compliance services with insight, hindsight, and the clear advantage of our breadth and depth of knowledge and regulatory compliance consulting. We offer the following pharma consulting regulatory affairs services for pharmaceutical companies.
- New Product Support
- Product Lifecycle
- Other Regulatory Services
- Combination Products
Compliance Assurance
The regulations process surrounding pharmaceutical companies can be tricky for even the most experienced industry veteran to understand. Just one misstep could mean significant and lasting consequences for your business. At Regulatory Compliance Associates, we offer the pharma consulting experience and pharma consultants necessary to guide you through the quality compliance process.
- Assessments
- Audits
- Regulatory Agency Response
- Preparation and Training
- Inspection Readiness
- Data Integrity
Quality Assurance
Regulatory Compliance Associates Quality consulting includes assessments, strategy, implementations, staff augmentations, and identification of quality metrics to ensure continuous improvement. Our pharma consultants understand the strategic thinking needed to align your business needs and goals. Regulatory Compliance Associates quality assurance services include quality experts with experience spanning major corporations and start-ups. Our pharmaceutical consulting firm knows firsthand how to achieve, maintain, and improve quality, and we excel in transferring pharma consulting knowledge to your organization.
- 21 CFR Part 11
- Data Integrity
- Manufacturing Support
- Facility Support
- Quality Metrics
Remediation Services
Regulatory Compliance Associates has a proven remediation services approach to managing FDA Warning Letters, Consent Decrees, Remediation and other serious regulatory situations. Our pharma consultants know how to partner with executive, legal, and communication teams. Each RCA pharma consulting Expert will develop a response that will be accepted by the regulatory agency and be realistic to execute.
Regulatory Compliance Associates pharma regulatory consultants will develop a comprehensive proof book of documented evidence demonstrating the corrective action taken to remediate non-compliant issues. In addition, each Regulatory Compliance Associates pharma consulting Expert understands compliance enforcement. We’ll prepare a comprehensive pharma consulting strategy to assist in your remediation efforts, drive continuous improvement, and maintain regulatory compliance with the regulations.
- Regulatory Action
- Regulatory Compliance
- Regulatory Enforcement
- Warning Letter
- 483 Observation
- Oversight Services
- Risk Management Plan
About Regulatory Compliance Associates
Regulatory Compliance Associates® (RCA) provides pharmaceutical consulting to the following industries for resolution of life science challenges:
- Life Sciences
- Pharmaceutical
- Biologic & Biotechnology
- Sterile compounding
- Medical device
- Lab Testing
We understand the complexities of running a life science business and possess areas of expertise that include every facet of R&D, operations, regulatory affairs, quality, and manufacturing. We are used to working on the front lines and thriving in the scrutiny of FDA, Health Canada, MHRA and globally-regulated companies.
As your partners, we can negotiate the potential minefield of regulatory compliance and regulatory due diligence with insight, hindsight, and the clear advantage of our unique expertise and experience.
- Founded in 2000
- Headquartered in Wisconsin (USA)
- Expertise backed by over 500 industry subject matter experts
- Acquired by Sotera Health in 2021
About Sotera Health
The name Sotera Health was inspired by Soteria, the Greek goddess of safety, and reflects the Company’s unwavering commitment to its mission, Safeguarding Global Health®.
Sotera Health Company, along with its three best-in-class businesses – Sterigenics®, Nordion® and Nelson Labs®, is a leading global provider of mission-critical end-to-end sterilization solutions and lab testing and advisory services for the healthcare industry. With a combined tenure across our businesses of nearly 200 years and our industry-recognized scientific and technological expertise, we help to ensure the safety of over 190 million patients and healthcare practitioners around the world every year.
We are a trusted partner to 5,800+ customers in over 50 countries, including 40 of the top 50 medical device companies and 9 of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies.
Commitment to Quality
Our Certificate of Registration demonstrates that our Quality Management System meets the requirements of ISO 9001:2015, an internationally recognized standard of quality.