Join SISPE Council Member Liz Mansi moderate discussions on pharmacoepidemiology careers from four industry leaders.

Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics are much closely related fields in terms of research and application of real-world data. Therefore, moving toward collaboration and networking would be advantageous for students from both parties in terms of learning and understanding how to use pharmacoepidemiologic data to pharmacoeconomic assessments as well as how to employ pharmacoeconomic evaluations in real-world evidence and practice. This webinar is aimed towards students, trainees, young professionals and researchers interested in pharmacoepidemiology & pharmacoeconomics research. Objectives 1. To increase the understanding of how pharmacoepidemiology data can be used in pharmacoeconomic evaluations 2. To understand how pharmacoeconomic evaluations can be used or incorporated into pharmacoepidemiology studies and real-world evidences 3. To make an aware on how pharmacoepidemiology and pharmacoeconomics can make its best use among those researchers involved in both areas or interested parties

SISPE Webinar Series - Overview of negative control approaches and its use as empirical calibration for confidence intervals and p-value This webinar will discuss negative control approaches in pharmacoepidemiologic research. The speaker will introduce the basic concept and discuss key challenges & potential solutions of negative control approach in pharmacoepidemiologic studies. The content will cover the overview of negative control approach, selection of an appropriate negative control, using negative control to calibrate confidence intervals and p-values, accounting for the random and systematic error, examples of applying negative control approach. This webinar is aimed towards students, trainees, young professionals, anyone interested in methodology and pharmacoepidemiologic research.

Deprescribing, the clinically supervised process of tapering or stopping medications with the goal of minimizing inappropriate medication use and improving patient outcomes, has gained significant attention in the last decade. While deprescribing has been mostly used as a solution to address inappropriate medication use and polypharmacy in older adults, there is growing evidence of its utility throughout the lifespan. In addition, finding the appropriate methodological approach in evaluating the impact of deprescribing interventions on health-related outcomes is a topic of interest for clinicians and pharmacoepidemiologists all around the world. Existing Deprescribing Networks (Canadian Deprescribing Network- CaDeN, US Deprescribing Research Network- USDeN, Australian Deprescribing Network- ADeN, or the Network of European Researchers in Deprescribing - NERD) provide valuable resources for clinicians and researchers. Some of these networks provide useful clinical tools, such as evidence-based guidance for implementing deprescribing protocols in clinical practice, while others focus on researchers, offering training opportunities, pilot funding, and tools for conducting research. The evidence to support deprescribing efforts is based on research showing a wide variety of negative health effects of inappropriate medications and polypharmacy, as well as randomized trials testing the efficacy and/or effectiveness of deprescribing interventions on reducing the use of targeted medications. However, clinical studies of medication withdrawal are limited due to challenges in recruitment and retention of participants, as well as limited power to study clinical outcomes and often limited measures of patient-centered outcomes that matter for patients and their caregivers. Co-sponsored by the US Deprescribing Research Network (USDeN) and Australian Deprescribing Network (ADeN).

Background: COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection, is milder in children ‎than in adults. Infected children and adolescents are at lower risk of hospitalization or ‎experiencing severe morbidity or mortality than adults, especially the elderly. However, there ‎are many unanswered questions regarding the overall impact of COVID-19 in children that ‎require further inquiry and discussion, some of which will be addressed in this forum. These ‎include short-and long-term outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children, as well as the ‎safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics. The impact of pediatric infection ‎on contacts of affected children, both at school and at home, will be discussed. Public health ‎and public policy considerations will be explored. Future directions for mitigating the impacts ‎of COVID-19 in children will be considered. ‎ Objectives: In this International Society for Pharmacoepidemiology Conference, the objectives are to 1) discuss the multiple facets of SARS-CoV-2 infection in ‎children; 2) discuss the strengths and limitations of the current approach to management of ‎COVID-19, from both a clinical and societal viewpoint; and 3) identify areas where additional ‎research is needed.‎

Plenary Session: Impact of COVID-19 on Health and Healthcare in Africa Moderator: Prof. Brian Godman, SIPBS, Glasgow, UK; SMU, Pretoria, South Africa and Ajman University, UAE Counting Deaths in Patients with COVID-19 Prof. Glenda Gray, South African Medical Research Council, South Africa HIV and COVID-19 Prof. Mary-Ann Davies, Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Research, School of Public Health and Family Medicine COVID-19 Vaccines – Their Effectiveness and Brief Comments from Doctor Olayinka Ogunleye on Current Update/Hesitancy Rates Across Africa Dr. Ombeva Malanda, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, South Africa Dr. Olayinka Ogunleye, Lagos State University College of Medicine, Nigeria The Power of Social Media Driving HCQ and Ivermectin Use in South Africa Prof. Natalie Schellack, Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, South Africa

Public Health Impact of COVID-19 Prevention and Control Policies on Childhood Immunisations in Africa and Beyond Dr. Kaja Abbas, London School of Health and Tropical Medicine, UK Impact of COVID-19 on Utilisation of Cancer Chemotherapy Services at a National Referral Hospital in Kenya Dr. Sylvia Opanga, University of Nairobi, Kenya Changes in Clinical Diabetes Services in Ghana in the COVID-19 Era and the Implications Eunice Twumwaa Tagoe, Strathclyde University, Glasgow, UK Impact of COVID-19 on the Management of Patients with Chronic Diseases in South Africa Prof. Johanna Meyer, SMU, Pretoria, South Africa

Public Health Impact of COVID-19 Prevention and Control Policies on Childhood Immunisations in Africa and Beyond Dr. Kaja Abbas, London School of Health and Tropical Medicine, UK Impact of COVID-19 on Utilisation of Cancer Chemotherapy Services at a National Referral Hospital in Kenya Dr. Sylvia Opanga, University of Nairobi, Kenya Changes in Clinical Diabetes Services in Ghana in the COVID-19 Era and the Implications Eunice Twumwaa Tagoe, Strathclyde University, Glasgow, UK Impact of COVID-19 on the Management of Patients with Chronic Diseases in South Africa Prof. Johanna Meyer, SMU, Pretoria, South Africa

Africa Union’s Smart Safety Surveillance Program AU S3 Hudu Mogtari, University of Nairobi, Kenya Digital Health, Data, and Data Science: Essential Tools and Assets for Effective modern age Pharmacoepidemiology: A focus on Kenya Dr. Christabel Khaemba, Pharmacy and Poisons Board, Kenya Steven Wanyee, IntelliSOFT, Kenya Risk Management in Pharmacovigilance – a Perspective as a Health Authority vs Market Authorization Holder Jayesh Pandit, Bayer HealthCare, Kenya Pharmacovigilance in a setting of High HIV and TB Prevalence Prof. Karen Cohen, University of Cape Town, South Africa

Drug Utilization Metrics in Pharmacoepidemiology Research Speaker: Prof. Ilse Truter, Nelson Mandela University, South Africa