AAMI Offers Three-Day Course on Human Factors for Medical Devices

A three-day course from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) offers participants a comprehensive overview to human factors as it relates to medical devices. It includes regulatory requirements of FDA, specifically the interpretation from the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) Human Factors Team, as they relate to human factors, and the process of applying human factors in design controls during the design of a medical device.

A basic foundation for applying human factors will be set, with discussions on user models and task analysis; anatomy of use errors; and how task analysis forms the basis for planning human factors efforts. Course content will also include a review of human factors methodologies contextual inquiry, heuristic evaluations, formative studies, and summative studies. Relevant human factors standards are discussed as well as human factors in the post-market arena. There are hands on exercises as well as real life case studies illustrating the application of human factors to medical devices.

This course is designed for quality and design engineers; research and development managers; risk managers; personnel from marketing, regulatory affairs, quality assurance, clinical/medical affairs, and customer service; and government regulators who are new to the application of human factors to medical devices. AAMI recommends this course for professionals who already have a basic understanding of the framework of quality management systems, particularly design control, risk management, and CAPA activities, but need more in-depth information about the concepts, science, processes, methodologies, and practical applications of human factors. It is recommended that human factors personnel who are new to the medical device industry have working knowledge of the Quality System regulation and design controls.

Course faculty are drawn from an experienced group of human factors and  quality system professionals; FDAs Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) Human Factors Team; and, when possible, an invited guest speaker from FDA/Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER). All course faculty have completed an instructor training program to ensure consistency and quality from session to session.

The course will be held Dec. 2-4, 2013 at the Westin Arlington Gateway in Arlington, Va. 

The cost of registration is $1,835 for AAMI corporate and institutional members; $1,935 for AAMI individual members; $2,235 for nonmembers; and $635 for government employees.

For more information, visit www.aami.org