21
Volume3 Issue6
|
N
ews and
E
vents
Counterfeit products,whichcanbe
indistinguishable fromacompliant product,
areperhapsmoredangerous thangreymarket
goodsbecausenothing is knownabout the
manufacturingprocess.Mr. Teitelbaumbelieves
counterfeitingof dental products ison the rise
becausemanufacturers aremaking itmoredifficult
to rerouteproducts. “Counterfeiting isgoing tobe
the issue that smacksdentistryacross thehead,”
heclaims. “Evenmanufacturers can’t identifya
counterfeit product—theonlyway to really know is
to test it.”
Toensureyoupurchaseonlycompliant products,
Mr. Teitelbaum recommends that dentists always
buy fromauthorized sources and followDIAC’s
suggestedprotocol for determining if adental
product is legally for sale inCanada (seebelow).
A keypoint is that everydental practice should
assignone individual tocheck
dental productswhen theyarrive
in theoffice. Heestimates it should
takeadental teammember about
fiveminutes togo through the
DIACprotocol, once they’reaware
ofwhat to look for. “You’remaking
absolutely sure thatwhat thedentist
isputting inapatient’smouth is
licenced for sale inCanada—and
what canbemore important than
that?”
a
VisitOasisDiscussions to
watchMr. Teitelbaum’s
full interviewand
downloadDIAC’s
suggestedprotocol
for identifying
noncompliant products.
Nobody really knows how these productswere shipped, stored orhandled,
so the consistency of a product’s qualityand its overall condition is
anyone’s guess. –
BernieTeitelbaum
DIAC’sSuggestedProtocol
forCheckingProduct
1. Assignone knowledgeableperson tocheckall product purchases
when theyarrive in theoffice.
2. Keepall orderingmaterials (catalogues, flyers, etc.) used inordering
theproduct(s) until theproduct hasbeenchecked in, and keep the
packageuntil theproduct hasbeenentirelyconsumed.
3. Manufacturerswill behappy to sendyouapictureof their licensedproducts and their packaging.
4. Checkeachproductwhen it arrives in theoffice:
Is it the sameproduct youordered?
Does it have the samenameas advertised?
Does it have the sameproduct number?
Is it the samepackage thatwas advertised?
Are thecontents the sameas advertised? (quantity, sizes, shapes, colours, etc.)
Is thepackage inEnglishandFrench?
Haveanymarkingsbeen removed/scratchedout?
Is theproduct in itsoriginal package (or a zip lockbagor other substitutecontainer)?
Do the lot number andexpirydateon thepackagematch thoseon thecontents?
Does thepackageor contentshavemarkings that indicate itmayhavebeen rerouted
(e.g., “Indiaonly” or “Not for sale inNorthAmerica”)
Is equipmentCSAapproved (or equivalent)?
