A FORMER secretary to the National Drugs Advisory Board (NDAB) yesterday spoke of the pressures it was under due to understaffing and lack of facilities.
Mr Brendan Murphy, secretary at the NDAB from 1974 to 1996, said the greater part of the board's income came from the Department of Health, while some came from licence fees which were controlled by the Department.
With one medical director, one inspector and one pharmacist in 1974 - and some few additions to staff thereafter - a backlog of about 1,000 applications accumulated through 1977 to 1979. By 1995, that had grown to 2,572. The backlog in application renewals stood at 1,381 in 1986. By 1994, it had risen to 2,049.
He spoke of the "huge volume of work" faced by staff. "Dr Scott (the chief executive and medical director) was an extraordinary woman. She never took annual leave. She worked 80 hours a week. She did nothing but work." When she retired in 1992, there was a three year delay before a chief executive was appointed.
He spoke of continuing difficulties with the Department of Health over funding, particularly adequate funding to attract good staff, and some problems with unions. As a result, it could take from "six months to two years to assess a product" before it might receive authorisation.
A system of priorities was evolved by the medical director, with new drug substances containing "novel active ingredients" being addressed first. "Problem manufacturers" were next. "Renewal was down the list of priorities."
He agreed it was "an obvious conclusion" that the board was "not able to carry out its functions properly", as put by Mr David McParland, counsel for Positive Action and the McCole family. "But that was not to say the existing staff did not carry out their instructions properly."
The Blood Transfusion Service Board (BTSB) was regarded as "different to the ordinary manufacturer". It was "a State body, fulfilling a vital national service. The people there had considerable expertise in their field".
"Were NDAB inspectors not particularly welcome at the BTSB?" asked Mr McParland. "Dr O'Riordan (medical director at the BTSB) was the authority on blood in this country. It was regarded as his field," said Mr Murphy.
