Three Sustainable Manufacturing Resources

A while back we told you about one medtech outsourcing partner that's trying to become a more sustainable supplier to the industry. Mack Medical's Julie Horst said sustainable manufacturing is becoming as important as ISO certifications these days. 

If you're interested in taking steps to make your manufacturing operations more sustainable, check out these resources:

Sustainable Manufacturing Initiative’s Sustainable Business Clearinghouse
Search more than 850 federal, state, and nongovernmental resources aimed at helping U.S. businesses increase competitiveness and profitability in sustainable ways through this Web portal maintained by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s (DOC) International Trade Administration. 

...

read more >>
May 13th, 2013
0
Will More Regulations Hurt Medical Device Funding?

The medical device tax is decreasing the flow of funding deals in the medical device industry.

Private equity and venture capital (PE/VC) investing in the medical device industry took a hard hit in 2012. Deals decreased by 13% in value and 15% in number of transactions from 2011. The bright spot, however, was Q4 2012. According to CB Insights, a venture capital database, the medical device industry closed 68 deals in the fourth quarter of 2012, a 41% increase from the previous quarter. But is it enough to keep the industry afloat in 2013? 

The medical device industry is poised for growth as the country’s aging Baby Boomers continue to get older and need increased medical care....

read more >>
May 13th, 2013
0
Final Thoughts From ATA 2013

MD+DI editorial advisory board member Bill Betten shares his thoughts on the 2013 International Meeting & Trade Show of the American Telehealth Association.

As noted in my day one notes, the American Telemedicine Association show is certainly growing in both conference and exhibitor attendance. The conference proceedings included many demonstrations and discussions of telemedicine in use.

The initial stages of the technology tend to be focused on providing care to remote locations or underserved areas, much as how radiology evolved into the teleradiology we know today.

There has not yet been a transformative impact on new methods of delivering care. I do believe that this will occur in the not-too-distant future, particularly with regard to monitoring of chronic health conditions.

There was a large emphasis on the exhibition...

read more >>
May 10th, 2013
0
A Call to Arms at ATA 2013: 'Innovation for Innovation's Sake is Not Acceptable'

Reed Tuckson, managing director of Tuckson Health Connections, urges telemedicine companies not to let regulatory fears stifle innovation. 

The plenary session on Tuesday, May 7, at the American Telemedicine Association's International Meeting & Trade Show was a highly energetic presentation by Reed Tuckson, MD, the current managing director of Tuckson Health Connections and former executive vice president and chief of medical affairs at United Health Group.

His talk, titled “An Insider’s Perspective: Real World Challenges and Opportunities for Telemedicine’s Full Adoption,” was to a large extent a call to arms.  He asked what we’re trying to do, as “innovation for innovation’s sake is not acceptable.”

Critical factors impacting this are cost (“CMS is done; states are broke”); the increasing prevalence of preventable chronic diseases (“one-third of people born in 2020 will...

read more >>
May 10th, 2013
0
At ATA 2013, Chairman Jeffrey Henley Explains Why Oracle Invested in Proteus Digital Health

In a session at the 2013 American Telemedicine Association's International Meeting & Trade Show, Henley also cited five forces impacting healthcare today.  

The plenary session on Monday at the American Telemedicine Association's International Meeting & Trade Show was presented by Jeffrey Henley, chairman of Oracle Corp.

Oracle is engaged in healthcare by enabling patient-centered technology for health engagement, and the company has invested heavily in developing software and IT infrastructure for disease management and health management. Oracle is also engaged with accountable care organizations, connected health, and public/private insurance exchanges.

Henley cited five forces affecting healthcare today:

  1. Clinical innovation
     
  2. Regulatory decisions
     
  3. Competitive threats...
read more >>
May 10th, 2013
0
How Much Are Universities Willing to Pay for Top Tier Medical Research Talent?

Dr. Arthur Toga had been at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) since 1987, developing innovative brain mapping software and having a unique position as a top tier researcher. That is, until crosstown rival University of Southern California (USC) lured him and fellow researcher Dr. Paul Thompson to move to the school's campus in downtown Los Angeles. Toga and Thompson will also be bringing in advanced equipment and a $12 million a year budget in government grants and private funding.

UCLA has long been known as a center of academic prestige, but it is a public university that has struggled with budget cuts alongside its sister schools in the University of California system, as the state has suffered tremendous financial difficulties. Meanwhile, USC has collected a...

read more >>
May 10th, 2013
0
Robert Langer's Formula for Start-Up Success

Medtech start-ups need five things in order to succeed, says Langer, who has launched at least 27 companies.

Langer

Robert Langer, the David H. Koch Insitute Professor at MIT, has more than 800 pending and issued patents, which have been licensed to hundreds of companies, including medical device manufacturers. Langer, who will receive the 2013 MDEA Lifetime Achievement Award next month, has also launched more than two dozen start-ups based on the groundbreaking discoveries and advances he has made in fields including drug...

read more >>
May 10th, 2013
0
Recall Round-up: GemStar Infusion System, and GE Healthcare's Giraffe Products Among those Recalled in April and Early May.

Hospira Inc., GemStar Infusion System: Recall

Posted 4/29/13, Updated 5/1/13
Damage from battery leakage may cause the device to shut off without warning. The clinical impact of a delay and/or interruption in therapy is dependent upon the clinical condition of the patient and the product being infused. Health care professionals are advised to weigh the risks and benefits to patients before using the device to administer critical therapies. 

Newport Medical Instruments, Inc., HT70 and HT70 Plus Ventilators: Class I Recall

Initiated by company 4/4/13, Posted by FDA 5/1/13
The recall is in response to customer reports of Newport Medical Instrument’s HT70 Ventilator and...

read more >>
May 10th, 2013
0
American Telemedicine Association Annual Meeting Connects At-Risk Patients to Specialists and Home Aging: Photo Essay

From May 4 until, May 8, 2013, those interested in the latest technologies used in remote monitoring converged in Austin, TX for the annual meeting of the American Telemedicine Association. About 6000 people got to see the latest gadgets for connecting doctors to their patients, displayed by about 300 vendors. After walking the aisles, it seemed that most of the wares fell into about two categories: (1) those for connecting high acuity patients to specialists, and (2) those for allowing people to age independently and gracefully in their homes.

From the medical device standpoint, I got to see real-time the convergence of telecommunications with traditional medical devices. The theme throughout the exhibition hall was partnerships and interoperability, specifically claims regarding the breadth of a particular telecommunication system in regard to the number of medical devices that could connect.

...
read more >>
May 8th, 2013
0
Is Medtronic Interested in Investing in Early Stage Companies? Well, Not Really

Venture capital firms have largely abandoned early stage deals.

Note this horrifying figure from the latest PricewaterhouseCoopers MoneyTree Report that found that in the first quarter of the year, only 7 companies saw first-time venture capital investments for a grand total of $23 million, compared to 61 first-time deals in the same period in 2012. 

So that must mean corporate investors like Medtronic have the opportunity to swoop in and invest in promising early stage firms, correct?

Well, not really says Chad Cornell, vice president of corporate development at Medtronic, who was a speaker at the annual IBF MedTech Investing Conference in Minneapolis Wednesday.

"All else being equal, we'd rather not invest early," Cornell told the audience. "For us it's a double-edged sword. If we do get in early, we want good...

read more >>
May 8th, 2013
1