Building on past projects, the Medical Device Industry Education Consortium (MDIEC) of four community colleges nationally and a wide array of industry partners plan the development of a national center for the medical device industry - a dynamic, export-oriented, research and development intensive manufacturing sector. The Center replaces company specific in-house training by providing comprehensive educational programs targeted at technicians involved in production, research and development, quality control, and related compliance management issues. In the planning project, the partners collect and analyze market research to document industry and student needs; expand partnerships with other community colleges and industry associations; develop center strategies and action plans to meet them; and develop evaluation, management and sustainability plans. The Center establishes a national network for delivering and continuously improving MDIEC curricula through partnerships with industry. Nationally consistent professional development programs for faculty and assessment programs are developed to ensure that graduates achieve prescribed proficiency levels.
The primary outcome of this planning grant was the completion of a plan for "The Development of a National Medical Device Advanced Technological Education Center" Building on the results from a recently completed Advanced Technological Education (ATE) project, eight community/technical colleges, strategically located in states that account for nearly half of U.S. medical device industry employment, have partnered to establish a proposed National Medical Device Advanced Technological Education (ATE) Center. Based on detailed feedback on industry needs from a 2011 survey of 429 executives representing 29 states, the Medical Device Industry Education Consortium (MDIEC) has designed the nation’s first standardized education and training programs targeted to entry-level workers and medical device technicians involved in production, quality control, research & development, product development, and clinical testing occupations. The National Medical Device ATE Center will meet industry demand by developing and offering certificate and degree programs in three critical areas: (1) Medical Device Quality Systems, (2) Medical Device Manufacturing, and (3) Medical Device Design Control. The Center’s most innovative component is its national student assessment programs that will measure both student knowledge and the student’s ability to apply that knowledge. The Center will also feature a research initiative that will examine issues related to the development of national student assessment tools/resources. Intellectual Merit: In today’s global economy, medical device companies in the United States must compete with high-technology organizations world-wide. R&D investments are considerably higher than those in normal manufacturing and innovations are taking place in fields such as materials science, microelectronics, telecommunications, instrumentation, biotechnology, and software development. In order to maintain current market share and grow future opportunities, medical device organizations have identified a need for highly specialized education and training programs and have indicated a preference for hiring workers with formal training. The National Medical Device ATE Center will offer rigorous STEM courses culminating in a capstone project that will assess both student knowledge and the ability to apply that knowledge in an industry-based environment. Broader Impact: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts that demand for Medical Device technician-level workers will continue to increase at an annual rate of 11% while declining in manufacturing industries overall. In order to maintain a competitive advantage, employers need specialized education programs that provide technicians the skills to (1) apply industry-specific quality requirements that are driven primarily by regulatory and cost considerations, (2) understand the broader design and production issues that are so critical to innovation in this industry and (3) develop a high level of critical thinking and problem solving skills. The National Medical Device ATE Center will provide these skills. Upon implementation of the National ATE Center, MDIEC will be the "National Voice" for Medical Device education and training. In addition, MDIEC will be the "Go To" Center for developing National Standards for Medical Device education and training and will provide the first nationally recognized Industry Certification for Medical Devices.
