The green light

This month, On Target shines a green light on the medtech industry. While fears about climate change and resource depletion impact on all our lives, it’s worth remembering that the ‘green’ principle – dynamic growth and creativity on the one hand, responsible and sustainable practice on the other – is already at the heart of the medical technologies sector. This issue celebrates the renewable energy of innovation in an industry dedicated to improving everyone’s health.

As our regular readers will know, we at On Target are already fully committed to recycling – whether of paper, packaging materials, headlines or jokes. But while we’re no strangers to low-carbon transport (our shoes are worn out), we’ve spared none of our personal energy in attending recent healthcare industry events to bring you news and views from all over the UK.

Martin Goldman’s article ‘How green is your medical device?’ looks at the reasons why conserving energy and materials are becoming major issues for the world medtech market. Regulatory and procurement models increasingly require companies to develop sustainable approaches to manufacturing, packaging and transport. As Martin notes, just painting your medical device green won’t fool anyone.

We also take a look at Managed Equipment Services (MES) and the complex equipment needs of the modern hospital. MES adapts a supply model taken from other industries, enabling hospital trusts to outsource the management of their resources – a striking example of how the healthcare industry combines medical and business expertise in order to facilitate improvements in health service provision.

Another type of partnership is explored in our ‘The Burning Question’ interview, where a happy medtech client (check that smile) explains how academic-based consultancy organisations such as Cels (in the North-East) can bring commercial expertise and contacts to start-up and small healthcare companies. Again, the theme is connecting innovation to market awareness.

Elsewhere in this issue, you’ll find: Robert Winston telling the medtech industry to engage more effectively with the public; how a dramatic presentation can bring your conference to life; GE Healthcare celebrating ten years of ultrasound; the challenges of marketing communications at Agfa HealthCare; and the British Cardiology Society showing that home is where the healthcare is.

Green is a good On Target colour. It means new, fresh, linked to the concerns of life and health: the business of healthcare, and taking care of business. As always, On Target takes a holiday in August, but we’ll be back in September to rock you with a brand new approach to market access.

Chris Ross
Editor