Medical packaging professionals will shortly have a new resource for augmenting their knowledge and skills set. The Medical Device Packaging Technical Committee (MDPTC) of the Institute of Packaging Professionals (IoPP) is developing a Fundamentals of Packaging course that delves into the unique processes, concerns and challenges of packaging medical devices and supplies.
During Pack Expo Las Vegas 2019, the IoPP Medical Device Packaging Technical Committee invited members of the medical device community to discuss the proposed program. I attended the meeting myself and was impressed with the enthusiasm and ideas in the room.
The content—being developed with junior engineers and those new to the medical device packaging industry in mind (although experienced engineers will likely get something out of it, too!)—is still in development, but has been organized into nine key areas:
1. Regulations, quality systems and standards
2. Materials and their forms (packaging and labels, working with suppliers)
3. Design (inputs, risks and outputs)
4. Equipment
5. Processes (sealing and sterilization)
6. Testing, validation and qualification, including human factors/usability
7. Troubleshooting, Corrective Action Preventive Action (CAPAs) and remediation strategies
8. Sustainability
9. Capstone (similar to a college thesis, this is a culminating academic and intellectual assignment for students at the end of an academic program or learning-pathway experience)
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According to the MDPTC, more segments may be added as the course content is fine-tuned.
And that’s where you come in. The group needs industry input in two ways:
1. Feedback on developing course content, as well as on other MDPTC initiatives (see survey link below).
2. As course instructors.
If you have questions about the Fundamentals course, please contact Jennifer Benolken, CPPL, at [email protected].
According to Benolken, proceeds from the course will go toward funding scholarships (for collegiate students interested in medical device packaging) to other industry learning events, such as the HealthPack conference. “This course is being developed as many industry leaders are recognizing there aren’t many resources available to train their inexperienced engineers,” Benolken says.
Development of the new Fundamentals program is just one of many activities IoPP’s Medical Device Packaging Technical Committee has in the works though. To learn more and to indicate your interest in participating in the development of the Fundamentals course or any other activity, please take this short survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DZCRF97.
CLICK HERE to learn more about IoPP membership.
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WestPack 2020: Ideas. Education. New Partners. Feb. 11-13
https://www.packagingdigest.com/medical-packaging/new-fundamentals-course-centers-on-medical-packaging-2019-11-22
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