Every year the TGA conducts a stakeholder survey to hear from you about where we are doing well and where we can improve. The table below provides an overview of what we have done in response to your comments in the 2017 TGA stakeholder survey.
| What you said | What we did |
|---|---|
| Provide more workshops, training, seminars and consultations and provide them in more locations |
We established an ongoing program of webinars in May 2018. We published an e-learning module on therapeutic goods advertising in July 2018 and more e-modules are expected by the end of the year. We have an ongoing program of consultations and face-to-face events and training. We are running workshops for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises on 'meeting your obligations'. We held a workshop in Perth in October and a Melbourne workshop is scheduled for November. We're also gauging interest in an Adelaide workshop. Information sessions on advertising therapeutic goods are also in preparation for late this year (details available soon) – plans are underway for Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane. |
| Raise awareness of what the TGA is doing (e.g. events and other activities) |
We launched a TGA Facebook page in September 2018 as another way for us to connect with you. Facebook complements Twitter and other existing news and update services. |
| Reduce the number of broken links on the TGA website | We fix broken links routinely as part of our website quality assurance processes. If you find a broken link please report it to us for prompt correction. |
| Improve the search engine on the TGA website | We allocated more resources to maintain the performance of our website's search engine. |
| Make it easier to find information on the TGA website |
We are always looking at ways to enhance the experience on our website. As part of this effort, we introduced newly designed information hubs on advertising and transvaginal mesh to help you find the information you need on these topics. |
| Make information and guidance documentation easier to understand | We have provided training to relevant staff on writing for the web. We have also developed tools to help our staff write user-friendly guidance documentation. |
| Consultation periods should be longer |
We aim to provide a six week consultation period wherever possible. We have been reiterating this expectation to our staff. We also consolidated all consultations related to the medical and medical devices regulation review on a single page to facilitate forward planning for these consultations. An eight week consultation period was provided for the recent consultation on the Therapeutic Goods Advertising Code Guidance taking into account the length of the consultation document. |
| Provide more information about the Clinical Trial Notification (CTN) process | We updated the clinical trials section of our website to include the Australian Clinical Trial Handbook, a CTN user guide and two instructional videos: one on creating and submitting a CTN and one on invoicing and the role of the Clinical Trials Repository. |
| Provide more information and guidance about good manufacturing practice (GMP) clearance |
We introduced updated GMP clearance application forms. In 2018, we held our first GMP Forum, which included presentations on a wide range of GMP topics. We have also updated the manufacturing section of our website, including a redesigned manufacturing medicines page and a new page on notices about GMP clearance. |
| Provide faster and more detailed responses to enquiries |
We are implementing the Unified Service Desk technology to help us track how we are performing with responding to your enquiries. We also conducted a campaign to remind our staff of the TGA's customer service standards. |
| Improve the TGA Business Services website | We are always looking at how to improve the user experience with the TGA Business Services website. We have made a range of front- and back-end improvements to enhance the website (e.g. improving the reliability of the password reset function). |