Medical product recalls: Testing the efficiency of your business

摘要

For any manufacturer, a product recall can be a nightmare. In the medical and pharmaceutical industries, it's even more serious. If your company is a trusted name facing the first recall in its history, it can look catastrophic.A problem need not be life or treatment-threatening to trigger a recall. In 2006, a component error led Australia's regulatory agency for medical drugs and devices, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), to issue a recall covering 14 surgical facemasks on the basis that there was a risk of premature failure. At the other end of the scale, Cochlear took a $138m hit to its balance sheet with its international implant recall in 2011. Even more extreme was the Pan Pharmaceuticals recall of 2003 that ultimately ended with the bankruptcy of the company.