Pharmaceutical Handling Diploma

Pharmaceutical products are lucrative and fast-growing cargo commodities for businesses across the value chain. Are you qualified to claim your share? The pharmaceutical industry spends billions each year to ensure the reliable and compliant transport of its products, and its expectations for your cargo business are high. This diploma will prepare you with the regulatory and operational foundations you need to start handling temperature-controlled shipments and show you how to build specialized pharmaceutical services into your daily operations.

Dimploma code: DIPL-78

Four specialized courses will give you a complete overview of the cold chain, allowing you to:

• Relate the logistical needs of the international healthcare industry and ensure compliance with its regulations
• Mitigate risks common to the transport of pharmaceutical and other time and temperature-sensitive shipments
• Implement a Quality Management System in your operations to ensure consistent and reliable service, compliance and continuous improvement
• Establish an integrated temperature-control logistics system in compliance with national and international regulations
• Establish process-driven quality and risk management system in all aspects of the air freight supply chain, from temperature-controlled infrastructure, qualified transport equipment and vehicles to well-trained professionals.

Key topics include

• International standards and guidelines for healthcare shipments: Requirements determined by the World Health Organization (WHO), EU, United States Pharmacopeia, IATA Temperature Control Regulations (TCR) and Perishable Cargo Regulations (PCR) manuals
• Temperature management: How to identify critical points throughout a product’s journey and ensure the correct temperature range
• Risk management for the cold chain: How to establish standard operating procedures to avoid temperature deviation between transportation modes, locations and stakeholders
• Temperature-sensitive product handling: Standards for packing, documenting, labelling and handling temperature sensitive products
• Temperature-controlled containers: The basic requirements for classifying, building and inspecting containers specific to the cold chain
• IATA internal audit checklist: How to conduct an audit of your cold operations and use your findings to establish consistency throughout your operations
• Lean management: Methodologies for streamlining your operations and ensuring continued quality

This highly specialized diploma program is recommended for management working in:

• Airline, handler or freight forwarder operations
• Cargo quality operations
• Warehouse and ramp operations
• Pharmaceutical audits

Feedback from past participants

Zvonimir Majic Ph.D., Director Global Quality Logistics, TEVA Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd

After 20 years in aviation followed by 6 years in the pharmaceutical industry participating in IATA CEIV Pharma Training; Temperature-Controlled Cargo Operations and Audit, and Quality and Risk Management for Temperature Controlled Cargo, I was able to extend earlier gained knowledge on handling time and temperature sensitive pharmaceutical products in the air freight industry.

Specialized training for quality and risk management systems designed around auditing principles provided detailed and structured guidance on regulatory guidance, industry best practices, and qualification requirements. Both training courses offer comprehensive insight on current IATA initiatives related to requirements harmonization on handling and the transportation of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical products.

Since the CEIV Pharma certification is already endorsed in the industry and regulatory environment, my expectation is that it will be broadly acknowledged as a valuable effort in enhancing pharmaceutical products' integrity during transport by air.

Navot Hirschhorn, Temperature Controlled & Special Products Manager, CAL Cargo Airlines

As CAL’s Temperature Controlled & Special Products Manager it’s critical that I am up to speed with the most advanced knowledge and expertise. CAL is an early adopter of industry regulations so it was clear that IATA’s training was an important process.

We took a holistic corporate approach to the training, bringing the IATA staff to CAL and conducting sessions in-house. This guaranteed we covered every aspect of the company and ensured standardization across the entire chain. The training was held over a period of 10 days, with 20 participants. During the training internal discussions naturally arose and the IATA staff acted as mediators. As a result, we see an increase in the quality and efficiency of in-house service.

The value I received was tremendous, and the whole team was left feeling empowered. The up-to-date information and increased knowledge has helped us to raise the quality of our service to customers, improve the aspect of our business such as our QA agreements, SLAs, SOPs, and to optimize our performance while drafting those documents.

Candidates must complete 4 Required courses and 1 Elective courses within three years.

A passing mark of 70% is required on all assignments and exams. A special distinction is awarded to candidates who obtain a distinction in all, or all but one, of all course exams and assignments that make up this Diploma.

How to obtain your diploma

1. Complete all 4 Required and 1 selected Elective courses that make up the Diploma, within 3 years.
2. Please contact us on our Customer Portal to request your diploma, stating the title of the diploma you are applying for and the list of courses you completed for that diploma.
3. IATA Training will issue your diploma upon verification of your eligibility.