Physicians and Industry

I have been working with a research center focused on developing medical instruments as well as medical engineering faculties for a decade. I would like to share my experience and hear words of others. There are innumerable growing fields where industry and physicians can collaborate. Surgeons in different specialties and other interventionist physicians are the main consumers of medical technology developed by industry. There should be a systematic and strong connection between these two arms so as to witness more efficient products with greater applications. Connections of this type are paid attention increasingly by industry. However there are still suboptimal designs where basic requirements of the physician and beneficiary, patient, are not taken into consideration as expected.

One example is oversimplification where technology exploited in general industry is borrowed for medical application with little coordination. Early surgical robots were transferred almost untouched from mass production industry, e.g. automobile production factories.

There is a long way from an idea to market. Ideas spurt in the minds of many physicians every day. The more a physician is skilful and experienced the more that idea will be matured and applicable. However this may not always be the rule. There are physicians with special interest and talent, e.g. Fogarty embolectomy balloon catheter. Every day ideas cannot be translated directly into products for certain reasons. The link between idea and product is research. Research centers under teaching institutions, i.e. universities, and research and development (R&D) centers under industry organize projects upon ideas and lead the path through a scientific method.

Interestingly physicians, especially those in academic career, generally do not consider a pure research project as a profit making activity. They aim at the resulting accomplishment and publication which elates their scientific reputation. In fact they may collaborate at no capital cost. However, physicians should be aware of their right at requesting, claiming, for their contribution in any resulting patent. Engineers should attend our fields and directly observe execution of procedures by physicians. They may find instant solutions for some of our long standing impasses.

Engineers may not find it easy to work with physicians. We have to make the professional atmosphere friendly enough so as to make them at ease and let their minds flourish and take the most advantage of their time and presence. Physicians also have to present at industrial workshops and become familiar with their capabilities and limitations. They may also find new paths for implementation of their ideas, as well as new complementary and original ideas. Physicians should keep their connection with industry not only till the final commercialization of their idea but also after that. Endless fine modifications are required to assure primary and sustainable success at market and they need to be persistent. The most competent reference who can guide step by step improvements of a medical good is a clinical consultant, a physician.

Journals oriented at publishing the results of joint medicineindustry research projects play a major role at strengthening the link between ideas of physicians and products of beneficence for health care in general. A journal with such initiative can become the fountain of knowledge for ideas, solutions, achievements, and accomplishments. The collaboration between physicians and industry should become lasting and ever growing. This is a potential opportunity for both societies and economy in general. I hope this journal plays its role at reinforcing the ties in between.