The innovative funding project "ProbenMaterialCenterBW" brings clinics and the healthcare industry together to ensure better availability of clinical samples and retrieved implants for research and development in the future.
The healthcare industry is an important core industry in Baden-Württemberg. However, the EU's new, stricter regulations are putting massive pressure on small and medium-sized companies in particular. For example, manufacturers of medical technology and diagnostic products will have to contend with drastically increased requirements for proof of clinical evidence in the future, both when launching new products and when recertifying existing products. One of the biggest hurdles is currently the lack of access to suitable patient samples and explants, i.e. implants removed from the body. These are essential if the safety and performance of medical and diagnostic products are to be demonstrated in accordance with EU regulations in the future.
To ensure that innovative healthcare products continue to be developed in Baden-Württemberg and vital medical devices remain available on the market, the "ProbenMaterialCenterBW" funding project has now been launched. The project, which is funded by the Ministry of Economics, Labor and Tourism of the State of Baden-Württemberg with around 1.3 million euros, will run for 21 months. During this period, the two consortium partners, the NMI, Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tübingen, and the health network BioLAGO e.V., intend to jointly establish a competence network to improve the availability of clinical samples and retrieved implants for the healthcare industry.
The potential for suitable specimens and explants in the more than 200 clinics nationwide is enormous. There is often a willingness in clinics to share specimen material and retrieved implants with research and development. However, until now, manufacturers have mostly lacked systematic access to suitable sample material. In addition, the access routes to the clinics are not very transparent. This is where the "ProbenMaterialCenterBW" project comes in, by creating a professional and cost-efficient, systematic infrastructure for providing samples to the healthcare industry. This will also open up a new source of income for clinics. The aim of the project ProbenMaterialCenterBW is to establish a comprehensive database with detailed information on available samples and explants. The ProbenMaterialCenterBW is the first cross-market access to relevant clinical specimens and explants.
