LTR 72: A clinician's insights on risk and collaboration in MedTech

“It comes down to collaboration. It comes down to intentional communication and ensuring there is trust and familiarity on both sides.”In this Let’s Talk Risk! conversation, Dr. Olaf Hedrich emphasizes the need for collaboration, building trust and familiarity between clinicians and engineers. We all have a mutual desire to do the right things for our patients, but sometimes our lens is a bit narrow. It is important to understand some of the technical side of our individual functions so we can learn to speak the same language and broaden the aperture on our collective view. Clinicians should learn some of the technical language and concepts of risk, and engineers should gain exposure to the practice of medicine relevant to their device. He shares a specific example of how clinicians can help uncover the true nature of risk and find innovative solutions to challenging problems. It is not unusual for harm to occur even when there is no device malfunction or defect. In these situations, clinicians can help understand the true nature of risk through peer-to-peer communication with other clinicians in the field directly involved with the device. Listen to this Let’s Talk Risk! conversation with Dr. Olaf Hedrich, which also includes an open discussion with a live audience. Jump to a section of interest using these timestamps.00:00:40 Introduction00:01:30 Transitioning into a medical safety role from clinical practice00:03:50 How clinicians can help understand the true nature of risk 00:06:25 Keeping the patient in the center of everything we do00:07:57 How intentional communication and trust drives collaboration00:08:50 Emerging challenges for MedTech in a rapidly changing environment00:11:25 Career advice to industry professionals for growth in this new environment00:14:27 Audience Q&A and open discussion00:32:10 Closing comments and key takeawaysIf you enjoyed this podcast, consider subscribing to the Let’s Talk Risk! newsletter.Suggested links:LTR: Tips for clinicians transitioning into a medical safety role in MedTech. LTR: Communicate to facilitate collaboration, not to impose opinions. About Dr. Olaf Hedrich, MDDr. Olaf Hedrich is currently the Chief Medical Safety Officer at Medtronic. Previously he was at Boston Scientific in a career spanning more than 10 years in various roles of increasing responsibility. He transitioned into MedTech from his clinical practice as a cardiac electrophysiologist. He also served as instructor of medicine and clinical fellow at Tufts-New England Medical Center, and as instructor of medicine and chief resident at Saint Louis University. He is a Fellow of the Heart Rhythm Society and a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology. Let’s Talk Risk! with Dr. Naveen Agarwal is a weekly live audio event on LinkedIn, where we talk about risk management related topics in a casual, informal way. Join us at 11:00 am EST every Friday on LinkedIn.DisclaimerInformation and insights presented in this podcast are for educational purposes only. Views expressed by all speakers are their own and do not reflect those of their respective organizations. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit naveenagarwalphd.substack.com/subscribe