Important Medicine Safety Information

Communicating safety information to patients and healthcare professionals is a public health responsibility, and is essential to achieve the objectives of pharmacovigilance in terms of promoting the safe and rational use of medicines and preventing harm from adverse reactions.

A Dear Healthcare Professional (DHCP) letter is a communiqué in a form of a letter intended to convey important medicine safety information, distributed by holders/applicants, directly to individual healthcare professionals. The DHCP letter further advises healthcare professionals on the need to take certain action or adapt their practices in relation to the use of the implicated medicine. A DHCP letter may be complemented by other communication tools and channels and the principle of consistent information should apply.

This webpage is intended to provide the public and healthcare professionals with convenient access to crucial drug safety information that has been approved by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA). Safety alerts offer essential information and recommendations concerning therapeutic products; however, it does not necessarily indicate that a product is deemed dangerous. All DHCP letters that Johnson and Johnson (Pty) Ltd have given to healthcare professionals can be found below.