The US Food and Drug Administration selected Gerald J. Dal Pan as director, office of drug safety in the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER). Dal Pan, selected from a strong field of candidates as part of a nationwide search, will lead the agency's post-marketing drug safety programme.

As the director of the office of drug safety, Dal Pan will be at the center of critical issues facing the nation on safe and appropriate use of medications. He will work closely with stakeholders, including the patient and consumer groups, the healthcare community and Congress; develop and maintain international and national contacts with regulators; implement policies and initiatives related to adverse drug events (such as the Drug Safety Oversight Board and the Medwatch programme), and represent FDA and CDER in scientific and regulatory matters related to drug safety and risk management, states a FDA release.

Dal Pan is currently the director, division of surveillance, research, and communication support, office of drug safety in CDER, a position he has held since 2003. Dal Pan joined the agency in 2000 and spent three years as a medical reviewer in the division of aesthetic critical care and addiction drug products, before moving to the office of drug safety as a division director.