One of the cornerstones of a quality management system is the integrity of the quality system records. It should go without saying how critical it is for these records to be truthful, accurate, and genuine. Fraudulent data can lead to an unsafe medical device, or a medical device that does not fully achieve its intended...Read More

Solving Problems Another great “soft skill” I learned from a mentor early in my career was knowing when to ask questions. You know, how long should I dig, research and investigate, before seeking the help of others? Some may gravitate toward spending too much time trying to find answers or solutions when it would have...Read More

Just a few thoughts on metrics … specifically software metric.  A software metric defines a standard way of measuring some attribute of the software development process or an attribute of a software component. A software metric allows us to compare and evaluate one process or component with another, and plan to improve quality of a...Read More

What is CAPA?   Corrective and Preventive Action (CAPA) is a fundamental quality process for medical device manufacturers including SaMD.  From the regulations it is really not that complicated.   21 CFR 820.100 reads: (a) Each manufacturer shall establish and maintain procedures for implementing corrective and preventive action. The procedures shall include requirements for: (1)...Read More

The document at the link provided is a short checklist for helping ensure or assess requirements quality. It is an educational aid to be used only by knowledgeable individuals and should not be used blindly or considered comprehensive. This was prepared by Brian Pate with input from Alan Kusinitz. RequirementQualityChecklist  Read More

For those using or interested in the SEI’s Capability Maturity Model, the link provided contains a white paper comparing IEC 62304 and the CMMi. This white paper was prepared by David Walker, a consultant that is a licensed SEI partner. It is published here with his permission. 62304-CMMi-comparison-DWalker092909Read More

The Medical Device and Diagnositc Industry periodical occassionally prints software articles oriented to Medical Device Manufacturers. To see their index of these articles by year, view the following link: MDDI Software ArticlesRead More

The paper at the link provided was written by Mark Paulk of the SEI. It compares ISO 9001 and the Capability Maturity Model (CMM). Although there are some differences between ISO 9001 and the FDA Quality System Regulation, both in content and enforcement, this paper may be helpful for medical device software developers involved in...Read More