Electronic software solutions enable VFD compliance for veterinarians  

Introduction

With the implementation of Guidance Document 213 on January 1, 2017, many veterinarians, producers, feed mills and pharmaceutical distributors are developing or changing their processes for managing Veterinary Feed Directives (VFDs), as well as veterinary prescriptions (scripts).

Many current over-the-counter (OTC) drugs have changed to VFD or script status effective January 1, 2017, so whether or not an animal health practitioner has been familiar with writing VFDs and/or scripts in the past, there is a need for understanding the changes and adjusting management strategies moving forward.

GVL has provided the industry with an electronic VFD system, FeedLINK®, for over 11 years.This platform offers a software solution for food animal practitioners that enables compliance with the new antimicrobial regulations.

This presentation will highlight GVL's electronic VFD system, FeedLINK®.

FeedLINK

FeedLINK Electronic VFD System is a web-based software solution, developed to assist in the streamlined fulfillment and tracking of VFDs. GVL launched FeedLINK in 2005 and continues to invest in further developments and enhancements to ensure full regulatory compliance. Another major objective of the system is streamlining the communication responsibility of veterinarians by automatically transmitting VFDs to both the feed distributor and producer. By subscribing to GVL, veterinarians, producers, and feed distributors gain access to their VFDs in a secure, CFR Part 11 compliant database, thus fulfilling the two-year storage requirements in Guidance 120.

Built-in GVL SmartEngine^™ Technology

The simplified process provided by GVL's platforms is driven by the patent pending GVL SmartEngine™ technology. SmartEngine technology guides the user through the labelled selections for a specific product to provide assurance to veterinarians, producers and feed mills that each VFD is consistent with label instructions.

VFD drugs can be searched by company, product, or indication of use by species.  Once a species and product is selected, SmartEngine only allows legal options for 1) stage of production, 2) indication of use, 3) dosage, 4) duration of use, 5) combination products, and 6) expiration date. SmartEngine also auto-populates all required cautionary statements including target animal and human safety statements, special instructions, and withdrawal times. With the addition of more VFD products to manage in January 2017, SmartEngine technology is designed to help simplify the creation and management of electronic VFDs. By providing VFD expiration date reminders to all stakeholders as well as other features, the system provides compliance assurances to the veterinarian, client and feed distributor.

Mobile friendly

The FeedLINK systems is mobile friendly. Whether on smartphone or a tablet device, the GVL system is ready to go anywhere that has an internet connection. This mobile connectivity allows veterinarian users to create and send a VFD while on a farm visit, reducing the time it takes to start treatment.

Data integrity

GlobalVetLINK's objective is to be the world's most trusted, secured and independent repository of animal health data, providing clients the confidence in the security of their information. As an independent third party company, GlobalVetLINK understands the high importance of a client's data security as well as the significance to their operation, and GVL ensures client data is secure.

Summary

GlobalVetLINK's software solutions provide food animal practitioners with a "one-stop-shop" of herd health management solutions to aid in compliance with the new antimicrobial regulations and support better decision making when prescribing interventions for clients, all while helping practitioners save time and resources.

References

1.      Guidance #213 - Guidance for industry on new animal drugs and new animal drug combination products administered in or on medicated feed or drinking water of food producing animals. Available at www <http://www.fda.gov><http://www.fda.gov>fda <http://www.fda.gov><http://www.fda.gov>gov <http://www.fda.gov>.

2.      GlobalVetLINK's initial experiences following the VFD and prescription changes post-January 1, 2017                                                                                                                                                                                        
       J.T. Holck, DVM, MS, MBA, Feed His People, LLC, Gilbert, Iowa, USA.