On March 24, 2026, the Chairwomen of the Board of the Latvian Medicines Verification Organisation (LZVO), Inese Erdmane, and Information Management Specialist Rita Liepiņa participated in the conference “Patient Safety through Safe Medicines”, organized by the Romanian Medicines Verification Organisation (OSMR).
The conference has been held for seven years, and this time experts discussed why falsified medicines pose a direct threat to patient safety, what measures can stop the availability and trade of illegal medicines in the digital environment, and extensively debated the importance of education, critical thinking, and health literacy.
Invited speakers and panel discussion participants included Dan Zaharescu (President of OSMR), Alexandru Florin Rogobete (Romanian Minister of Health), Pharm. Dr. Răzvan Mihai Prisada (President, National Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices of Romania), Laurențiu Mihai (General Manager of OSMR), Dr. Caroline Clarinval (Country Office Representative for Romania, World Health Organization), Victor Negrescu (Vice President of the European Parliament and Member in the Committee for Public Health) Matus Ferech (Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety), Răzvan Marinica (Chief Commissioner – Directorate for Investigation of Economic Crime, Romanian Police), Petra Doerr (Director, European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & HealthCare), and other experts.
Inese Erdmane, Chairwoman of the Board of LZVO, emphasized:
“The conference brought together experts from across Europe. The discussions once again highlighted the crucial importance of cooperation between state institutions and national competent authorities, while also underlining the need to continue efforts in educating and informing the public on health literacy issues.”
On behalf of LZVO, I. Erdmane expressed gratitude to the organizers of the forum for the valuable discussions and for raising awareness of this concerning issue on an international level.
