At first time in Ukraine morphine in pills was registered manufacturing by InterСhem SLC

Order № 77 of MOH from February 1, 2013 for the first time in Ukraine was registered drug “Morphine sulfate” in tablet form. This event caused a wide public response both in our country and abroad. In an official press release of the international non-profit non-governmental human rights organization Human Rights Watch this event was called “the most important step to improve the quality of patient care at the end of life” in Ukraine. The International Council for Drug Control (INCB) emphasizes that these drugs must be available for pain relief. Morphine is included in the basic list of medicines of the World Health Organisation. This drug is the “gold standard” of WHO for treatment of pain caused by chronic or terminal illness.

So far, Ukrainian patients was only available injectable form of morphine. Access of critically ill patients with severe pain to adequate pain relief was critical limited, especially outside the hospital.

“Freedom of pain should be seen as right of every cancer patient and access to pain relief – as an expression of respect for that right.” (Narcotic and psychotropic drugs. Achieving balance in national opioids control policy. Recommendations for evaluation. WHO, 2000).

According to Human Rights Watch research in Ukraine each year nearly 428,000 people are in need of pain relief and palliative care to relieve pain in terminal illness (“Uncontrolled pain”, 2011). The emergence of morphine in tablet form will allow patients to take the drug for pain relief regardless of the presence of doctors, independently and timely to avoid multiple daily painful injections and their complications (suppuration and bruising), which will undoubtedly facilitate their suffering and anguish of loved ones, close to the terminally ill. The emergence in Ukraine morphine tablets will be possible to respect for fundamental principles and international standards of treatment of pain syndrome, approved by the WHO.

“Production of the opioid analgesics, which include morphine, inside their own country will meet the needs of the state in essential medicines for particularly vulnerable patients”, – says Anatoly Reder, CEO of “InterHim.”