ARCHIVED - Examples of Our Work - Food and Drugs Act Liaison Office

Here are some examples of how the Food and Drugs Act Liaison Office (FDALO) has helped Canadians:

A manufacturer whose product has been taken off the shelf

• A business owner came to FDALO after Health Canada requested that a product be removed off the shelf.
• He was concerned that the timeframe for obtaining permission to sell his seasonal product would cause him to miss a key deadline and would jeopardize his business.
• The business owner was very upset and felt that his only option was to make a public appeal to escalate the issue.

How we helped: Working one-on-one with the business owner, the FDALO advisor helped him identify various constructive options available to him.

Outcome:  With support from our Office, the business owner was able to successfully communicate directly with Health Canada and resolve this issue to his satisfaction. 

A consumer wants to know why the product she had a bad reaction to is still available 

• An individual had an adverse reaction to a therapeutic product. She was concerned about reporting mechanisms to capture such information, and wanted to ensure that a similar incident did not happen to another person.  This complex issue involved several levels of government and jurisdictions.

How we helped: The FDALO advisor worked one-on-one with the individual to identify the key issues for her. The advisor also contacted the relevant officials at Health Canada for clarification.

Once the issues were clearly defined, the individual was able to get the information that she was seeking from Health Canada.  She learned that the department was already making the changes that were important to her.

Our Office was also able to help the individual identify and follow-up with the other jurisdictions that were implicated in this case, which helped diminish her frustration that "Health Canada was not doing anything to help."

Outcome:  The person was pleased with the intervention, that someone was listening to her and the fact that Health Canada was already addressing her concerns.

A consumer's shipment is being held at the border - and Health Canada has missed its own deadline for getting back to him

A consumer received a notice that a product he was importing was denied entry into Canada and that Health Canada would notify him of the shipment's status by a certain date. Several weeks past that date, the consumer has heard nothing from the Department.

How we helped: We contacted the appropriate regional representative of Health Canada and obtained information about the file, including the issues that were causing a delay.

Outcome: With this information, the consumer was able to re-establish contact with the Department and also able to claim a re-imbursement from his credit card company.

A business owner felt she was poorly treated by a Health Canada inspector, who requested the business halt sales of a product

The request was based on a third-party complaint that the product posed a health risk. After investigating the issue, the inspector requested that the business owner remove the product from the market, and provide further information about it. The business owner felt the situation was poorly handled.

How we helped: We worked with both sides to clarify expectations and timeframes.

Outcome: With positive communication restored, the business owner felt more empowered and that Health Canada was taking her concerns into consideration, while carrying out its mandate for ensuring public safety. The Inspector also appreciated the opportunity to work with the person to clarify the expectations and to mend the professional relationship.