5 ways data analytics positively impact product development

It’s true data is derived from the past, but its greatest power is to predict the future and inform a better path forward. In product development, identifying issues that might arise before they happen can make a huge difference, and in medtech, means saving lives and preventing tragedies.

With different databases and millions of reports published every year, sifting through data to find truly relevant insights can take months, but now there’s a tool to derive insight from complex medtech data, leaving time to act to enhance business.

Basil Systems is a software as a service (SaaS) platform using artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) technology to allow natural language full-text search of medical device databases such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Instead of spending hours navigating manually through data silos, Basil Systems brings all the data together, making it easy to filter, find, and analyze exactly what’s needed.

Here’s a look at five ways easy access to medtech quality data can positively impact product development.

Some essential elements in product development lie outside the product. The most unpredictable of these is the user. Often, patients using medical devices have no official training or medical education, leading to issues for even faultless devices. If a product is difficult to use or prone to misuse, the device will develop a bad reputation.

In product development, this means having insight on how a patient may have troubles with a device. For example, take the adverse event report below that explains a “user device problem” for an infusion set that resulted in a patient having hyperglycemic episodes due to the infusion headset falling off. (See figure 1.)

Having this early insight can set into motion a quick update of the device. With this specific user error, there may be an investigation to better secure the infusion headset while patients sleep.

These insights can mean the difference between a successful device and losing to a competitive product without issues. Anticipating a potential problem trend from a few early users is a proactive way for product developers to stay ahead of the market.

2. Find Inspiration for new products.

Using data-driven insights to anticipate new customer needs can be extremely powerful. Product developers can take advantage of easy data access for new inspiration, enabling one to see patterns and pursue relationships not visible before, exposing gaps in the market with untapped space for product innovation.

In medtech, teams succeed if they understand where unmet market needs exist. Imagine navigating through a visual landscape of existing 510(k) products and technologies to quickly see where improvements are needed.

The interactive flow map of 510(k) medical device relationships in figure 2 is an example of quickly scanning and exploring technology landscapes. In the image center we have the Advamedical Inc. Axiostat Chitosan Hemostatic Dressing. The yellow box depicts the predicate used to get clearance, the white boxes are sibling devices using the same predicate, and the blue box is a device referencing Axiostat as a predicate.

An interactive navigable map encourages strategic thinking into products and can readily inspire new ideas while determining if an idea has already been produced.

3. Track competitor insights.

Tracking competitor activities and market responses is essential for product developers. What are other companies doing? Is it working well? Could we do it better? A glance at the graph (figure 3) demonstrates an ability to swiftly answer these important questions.

Analyzing the graph, it’s easy to see Respironics had a spike in adverse events from 2015 to 2016. More importantly, they’re experiencing a new spike now. Why are Maquet and Resmed seeing elevated adverse events during the past 12 to 24 months? Investigating these trends could lead a competitor to solve problems proactively and be prepared to fill an uptick in market demand if any of these companies were to experience a recall. As evidence, you may remember that Respironics had several recalls around 2015 for these devices.

For product development teams, clear access to emerging competitor issues helps anticipate market needs and prepare extra bandwidth to take advantage of rapid market shifts.

4. Assess prior real-world materials experience.

Optimizing materials for manufacturing a medical device is another major focus for product development. Real-world experience with materials used in prior devices can narrow the options and determine the best selection or application.

For example, Nitinol, a metal alloy of nickel and titanium with unique properties such as superelasticity and shape memory, is often used in catheters, surgical instruments, and stents. If you’re investigating Nitinol as a possible material, surveying the history of diverse Nitinol applications could greatly inform your decision.

With a comprehensive full-text single-search platform, one search for Nitinol populates all devices that have ever used or referenced it, as shown in figure 4.

Product developers can further investigate Nitinol’s success rate by diving into the search results. Have your competitors used this material? What quality or standards were used for such products? Were there any major adverse events related to this material choice?

With easy access to such broad and diverse information, developers can be inspired by devices far outside their specific applications using a material of interest in novel ways. They’ll also see how well the material worked for competitor products, enabling a deeply informed decision on how to proceed with that material.

5. Accelerate better revisions, updates.

Quick, efficient access to data for medical devices enables product developers to make better-informed and faster decisions on product revisions and updates. Moving quickly with confidence can solve small issues before they explode into large ones or recalls.

Better clarity into emerging quality trends for your products lets you develop more informed solutions, getting enhancements to market faster. This predictive insight, along with tracking competitors’ product issues and monitoring materials and suppliers, can give you a competitive edge.

Conclusion

There are many ways that quick, easy, comprehensive access to data can benefit medtech product development. Basil Systems’ goal is to make big messy silos of data easy to navigate, enabling faster, better decisions for product development. Data can give you a peek into the future, helping you build a more successful business and achieve our common goal for medtech: improving patient lives.

About the author: Kaitlyn Bricker is a business development representative with Basil Systems and can be reached at 313.627.6285 or kbricker@basilsys.com.

Basil Systems
https://www.basilsystems.com