An SOP for electronic-records archiving is a regulatory requirement and good for business, says Siegfried Schmitt, vice president, Technical at Parexel.
Q. In a recent audit, we received an observation because we do not have a standard operating procedure (SOP) for the archiving of electronic records. We keep our electronic data and records on our live systems. Why would we need such a procedure?
A. The short answer is because the regulations stipulate this. “For new systems, a Validation Summary Report for each computerized system should be in place and state (or provide reference to) at least the following procedure for data archiving (processes and responsibilities), including procedures for accessing and reading archived data” (1). It is, however, sensible to look at the reasons behind this requirement and why it is also good business sense to have such a SOP in place. Data and records that are governed by the healthcare regulations must be retained and be available throughout the mandated retention periods for the respective records. In the case of clinical data, this can be 25 or more years, and for manufacturing records (paper or electronic), this is typically five or more years.
Over such a period of time, almost every computerized system undergoes modifications for a variety of reasons. These include patching the system (e.g., for security), installation of new software modules (e.g., for enhanced usability), system upgrades, system retirement, or system replacement. Any of these changes may or will affect the electronic records in the system. Depending on the impact, it can or will be necessary to remove the records from the system and store them in an archive.
Despite best intentions and good planning, there is always the possibility of an unexpected need to archive electronic records. That could be because of an unforeseen system failure or because the system performance falls below acceptable levels. It is not acceptable to wait until such an event occurs to write a procedure for the archiving of records and data; instead, it is essential to prepare the SOP well in advance.
Archiving electronic records is rarely trivial. Simply printing out the records is unlikely to either assure the entire record is captured or to be compliant with the regulations (paragraph 7.7.2 in reference 2). Archiving must take into consideration the regulations for automated systems and the guidance on data integrity. Especially:
In summary, having an electronic-records archiving SOP in place is not only a regulatory requirement, but it also makes sense from a business perspective. After all, you want to be sure that you can access your data and records throughout their lifespan and to be certain that the values and information therein is still correct and complete. Writing the SOP, however, is only a first step, implementing the process and validating it are the necessary and logical next steps.
Siegfried Schmitt is vice president, Technical at Parexel.
BioPharm International
Vol. 35, No. 7
July 2022
Page: 50
When referring to this article, please cite it as S. Schmitt, “The Difference between Electronic Records Retention and Archiving,” BioPharm International 35 (7) (2022).
EXO Biologics and ExoXpert Reach Two Critical Milestones that Advance Exosomes
December 3rd 2024EXO Biologics and its subsidiary, ExoXpert, have received GMP certification of a European exosomes manufacturing facility and have successfully loaded mRNA and DNA payloads into GMP-grade exosomes for drug delivery.