‘Leaning in’ on Combination Products

Posted on March 7, 2016 by FDA Voice

By: Nina L. Hunter, Ph.D., and Rachel E. Sherman, M.D., M.P.H.

Medical products that combine drugs, devices, and/or biological products are known ascombination products. These products present a number of regulatory, policy, and review management challenges because they include components from multiple regulatory categories (e.g., drug and device, drug and biologic, biologic and device, drug, device, and biologic) with distinct regulatory requirements, and review of a combination product generally requires involvement of more than one FDA Center.

Nina L. Hunter, Ph.D., FDA’s Associate Director for Science Policy in the Office of Medical Products and Tobacco

However, as FDA continues to adapt to the rapidly evolving ecosystem of therapeutic development, it’s more important than ever to find ways to encourage innovation and support the development of these needed technologies.

To that end, FDA has been working on ways to improve the overall efficiency, consistency, and predictability of combination product review. We’ve already shared some of our progress with you in a recent blog post.

An important next step is launching the lean management process mapping approach to build a better system for combination products review – one that’s more cohesive, more collaborative, and more systematic.

What is lean management process mapping, you might ask? It begins with an analysis of what’s being done now, then designs a future state that eliminates waste and maximizes value.

We expect two significant outputs from this mapping:

A “current state” map that shows how we’re doing now. Importantly, this initial look will highlight existing sources of delay or redundancy. Creating this baseline map also will allow us to identify metrics for success and to assess the impact of improvements as they are put in place.
A “future state” map showing a streamlined, efficient process that will eliminate previously identified delays and redundancies.

Rachel E. Sherman, M.D., M.P.H., FDA’s Associate Deputy Commissioner in the Office of Medical Products and Tobacco

Has lean management already been successfully applied at the FDA? Yes!

Under the leadership of Kyle Hair, the Lean Management Team in the human drugs program in the Office of Strategic Programs has executed strategic work and communication plans for initiatives across the Agency.

For example, when the “Lean Team” consulted with the Office of Clinical Pharmacology within the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, it helped establish project management staff functions, roles, and responsibilities for the Office’s core processes. The team also has applied its expertise to stand up the new Office of Pharmaceutical Quality, as well as apply its expertise to such topics as drug safety communications and risk evaluation mitigation strategy.

Lean management works. And we’re confident that applying lean management principles to combination product review will allow us to enhance communication and coordination among the groups that oversee the development, review, and approval of combination products.

Of course, we realize that success in this area depends upon meaningful interactions among all FDA Offices and Centers involved with combination products review. The active participation emphasized by lean management principles will ensure that the needed collaboration is present from the start.

Lean methods also encourage critical thinking and problem-solving, with a focus on reliable, efficient, timely, and reproducible evaluation and decision-making. In this case, our efforts will be focused on the ultimate goal of a combination product review system that is transparent, clear, and consistent.

But lean process mapping is only one piece of the puzzle. Stay tuned for more information about other key priorities and initiatives aimed at modernizing the review of combination products!

Nina L. Hunter, Ph.D., is FDA’s Associate Director for Science Policy in the Office of Medical Products and Tobacco

Rachel E. Sherman, M.D., M.P.H., is FDA’s Associate Deputy Commissioner in the Office of Medical Products and Tobacco