Join us throughout January as we feature medical devices; this week’s post highlights the Southeastern Medical Device Association.
The Southeastern Medical Device Association (SEMDA) is a regional non-profit trade association that supports and promotes medical device and medical device data system (MDDS) companies in the Southeast.
Created in 2004, SEMDA helps such companies accelerate device development and achieve commercial success, through educational resources and access to funding and networking opportunities.
SEMDA members gain access to quarterly meetings, regional and national affiliate joint events, and SEMDA’s annual conference. Such opportunities allow members to obtain development skills, learn from experts in the industry, and network with others who can help companies achieve their business and medical device objectives.
In addition, SEMDA seeks to provide educational content around issues that a medical device company needs from the start-up phase to the post-market launch. It brings in experts on topics such as grant-writing, presentation, and the business aspects of the medical industry. It also produces original content about the medical device industry.
“We’re constantly updating our website, putting up data, and working with other device advocacy groups to make sure that our content is current, relevant and meaningful,” SEMDA President Robert Crutchfield says.
According to Crutchfield, the medical device industry is experiencing significant shifts. In the past, medical devices were typically used on patients in clinical settings and administered by a professional. Now, however, the point of care has extended past traditional institutions and patients are often treated in their home and work environments. As a result, the medical device industry has had to follow suit.
Another challenge that the industry faces is the emergence of medical device data systems (MDDS). MDDS are hardware or software products that transfer, store, or display medical device data. Crutchfield says MDDS has not only expanded the range of medical devices on the market, but also the range of complexity that such devices face in their commercialization regulatory pathways.
In light of the transforming medical device industry, SEMDA is making changes of its own. Crutchfield says although SEMDA has traditionally been regionally chartered, its efforts have thus far focused on developing the medical device industry in the Atlanta area. To better reflect its regional focus however, SEMDA recently expanded its board to include members from Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, and Tennessee.
In addition to providing companies exposure to investors, Crutchfield says SEMDA also seeks to offer companies exposure to strategic organizations such as J&J, Cardinal Health and Kimberly-Clark. Such organizations can supply knowledge about the medical device industry from an entrepreneurial perspective.
Finally, Crutchfield says SEMDA wants to build better working relationships with other life sciences organizations that intersect with medical device companies, including research universities and state-based life sciences organizations. SEMDA hopes to provide support and assistance by “filling the gaps” that such organizations might have in their product offerings, acting as a “regional enabler.”
“We hope we can lift the boats of our local colleagues in the life sciences industry,” Crutchfield says.