Consumer Resource Paper

Essay by chase06University, Bachelor'sA-, January 2010

download word file, 5 pages 0.0

InternetReceiving health information or purchasing medical supplies online before determining whether or not the website has been deemed credible could have adverse effects on your body. Products online might not be fitted by a healthcare professional and may actually do more harm to the body than good. The website may also make claims about their products which are unproven. Receiving information from a non-credible website may result in an incorrect diagnosis or unnecessary tests. Some people might even make unnecessary lifestyle changes based on inaccurate information or poor medical devices. In some cases, people may not even receive the treatment they need.

The Governing body’s, Health Canada and the Medical Devices Regulations, sets the requirements for medical safety standards in Canada to protect Canadians from poor medical products (Healthcare Canada, 2006). Discredit must be given to companies when there is no recognizable or trusted governing body because there can be no assurance in these products when they have yet to meet a predetermined set of standards.

Products that meet the requirements must go through safety and effectiveness tests to determine: performance, design, degree of acceptable risks, deterioration, storage, transportation, compatibility, reasonably foreseeable hazards (flammability, explosiveness), sterilization, accurate and consistent measuring capabilities, validation, and labeling (Industry Canada, 2007). Companies will first need an establishment license in order to acquire a medical device license. They will need to meet the labeling and record keeping requirements which contain distribution records, mandatory problem reporting, and recalls.

The safety of the health products purchased online is detrimental to the health and wellness of the recipient. An unreliable company might sell products which do not meet the Canadian Health requirements. These products might be counterfeit, second hand/used, not stored properly, or even recalled. There is no way to determine whether these products are sterile, in tact,