All You Need to Know About Medical Device Product Development
Developing a medical device product that adds value to the end user while capturing a profitable market share is daunting. Suppose you have a unique idea for a new medical device product development or an improvement to an existing one, but the idea itself is not enough.
You have to turn it into a reality, and that may appear challenging. You could be lacking critical knowledge, facilities, or personnel. It may be unclear how to incorporate necessary functionalities or how to take a technological leap. So let’s walk through everything you need to know about medical device development.
Why Is Medical Device Product Development Important?
Medical device product development is particularly demanding because healthcare is a life-intensive sector that encompasses complex measures. Additionally, a medical device must align with healthcare regulatory standards and solution provisions to satisfy end-user needs.
A loosely defined and designed medical device with improper design control cannot meet regulatory requirements and enter the market. Or, even if it passes compliance, it will fail to deliver the intended functionality and benefits based on market needs, resulting in lower market adoption compared to well-designed products.
If you look closely at the product development of significant medical devices such as allergic drug vending machines, automated insulin pumps, miniature endoscopy devices, and many more, you will conclude that medical device design development is more than just an idea.
It is a time intensive process that starts with conceptualizing a solution, creating effective internal systems, and developing a prototype. Ultimately, the process ends with mass manufacturing to sell a high-quality medical product.
How to Design and Develop a Medical Device
A proper healthcare solution necessitates everyone staying on the same page, with a substantial scope definition based on end-user needs, joint efforts across the team, and adherence to specifications and requirements extracted from product definition while mitigating risks and adhering to the highest possible quality.
Taking these factors into account, here is a complete guide for healthcare professionals on designing and developing an effective medical device.
Medical Device Product Development Process
Considering the sensitivity of medical devices, a holistic approach to design and development is required. It necessitates precision at every stage, from product conception to compliance, design, testing, and marketing.
The product development process for medical devices varies by region, with different rulings and standards that must be met in the EU, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other areas. The relevant regulatory body oversees these precise regulatory requirements, such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in the United Kingdom.
The entire product development process covers multiple arenas, from medical device design to clinical trials, risk management to manufacturing.
Stages of Medical Device Development Process
Specific stages must be followed during medical device development by the medical device manufacturers’ process to ensure design control, conduct risk analysis, and assure that the product is effective and safe for use. Generally, the steps involved are the initial concept, product design, prototyping, device testing, design verification and validation, and medical device manufacturing.
5 Stages of Medical Device Product Development
The FDA has set out five stages for processing medical devices in the medical device industry to prepare them for market. These stages form their quality system regulation (QSR), which governs “the methods used in, and the facilities and controls used for, the design, manufacture, packaging, labeling, storage, installation, and servicing of all finished devices intended for human use.”
The FDA stages are:
1. Initiation – Device Discovery and Concept
2. Concept and feasibility analysis for formulation
3. Design control and development, including verification and validation and design controls ensuring that the design output corresponds to the specified design input
4. Product launch preparation and final validation
5. Product launch and post-launch evaluation
Stage 1- Discovery and Concept of Medical Devices
This is the preliminary stage of developing a product. Market research, competitive analysis, intended use analysis, and a financial review contribute to the overall device concept. A company that wants to create a successful product must first determine whether the product is needed in the market, which is often accomplished by interviewing potential customers.
Product Idea Development
A product idea is typically a new solution to an existing problem that already has a solution on the market. As a result, during the discovery phase, the company will assess the risk analysis as well as the competitiveness of these other solutions. Its efficacy does not always determine a solution’s competitiveness.
This stage also encompasses the design and development plan to determine the product’s design and its entire development process.
Financial Analysis
The cost of the product, its ease of use, and customer satisfaction with their current solution are all important considerations. A financial analysis will determine whether the cost of creating the product will likely be worth it based on competitive analysis and market research.
The concept phase is where market data and technology intersect to determine whether the product that the market wants is engineering-feasible. Experimentation is used to achieve proof of concept, with experiments designed to predict the product’s success in the target use case.
Stage 2: Formulation, Concept, and Feasibility
The second development stage entails conducting a formal risk assessment and gathering regulatory and customer requirements, with initial prototyping serving as proof of concept. This phase illustrates the viability of your product idea in a variety of ways, including hazard analysis, and you also receive the product prototype.
Prototype Creation
A prototype is an early design for a proposed device that can be tested in the lab to ensure it functions properly. Everything from the design trace matrix to the toxicity of the materials used to the mechanical strength of the device to withstand the use case conditions must be taken into account. Simultaneously, the prototype is tested for efficacy and goes through an approval process before the final product is made.
Stage 3: Design and Development -Verification and Validation
Once a company has developed its product to the point where they believe it can be used safely by/for/on people, the FDA must approve the next steps. The design control process starts from design input development, design verification, and approval that consists of device design and manufacturing processes to be carried out in the production phase.
Transformation of Design Inputs into Design Outputs
Design inputs are transformed into design outputs by converting the product requirements into high-level specifications. The design validation process confirms whether or not the specifications meet the requirements. The output becomes the input for revising the requirements until the design output matches the design input. When the final design is complete, it is sent to the manufacturing facility for mass production.
Design verification and design controls regulations require creating a Design History File (DHF), which depicts the connections and relationships between all processes.
The diagram below shows how the design control process can be carried out in the waterfall design process.
The goal of medical device verification during the design process is to ensure that the device is aligned with the needs of targeted users and delivers the intended solution. It also aids in determining whether all requirements have been met. It aids in regulatory compliance as well as the design of high-quality products and manufacturing processes
Stage 4: Final Design Validation, FDA Approval and Product Launch Preparation
Operational qualification (OQ) and performance qualification (PQ) is completed in phase 4 (PQ). You can gather all testing evidence, such as biocompatibility, electrical safety, and so on, at this point to avoid any adverse events and mishaps.
The FDA also inspects the facility where the finished product is made to ensure that good manufacturing practices (GMP) are followed. Once a product has FDA approval, it goes into final production.
Phase 5: Production, Market Introduction, and Post-Market Follow-Up
You are ready to market your product once your product(s) and QMS have been certified by a Notified Body (s). To deliver products on time within budget, and most importantly, with safe and high-quality medical devices, you must have a validated and verified production plan.
Once your products are on the market, you must collect data from customers like users, patients, hospitals, technical operators, distributors, and other entities and analyze it regularly as part of the risk management process.
Conclusion
Many of the quality systems, processes, and requirements involved in medical device product development have been outlined in this article, all of which highlight the importance of document management throughout the medical device development process. If you are looking for a veteran medical device development company, click here.