Global Med Tech Conference and Expo (GMT)

10 - 12 October 2022   (In-person & Virtual）
Kingkey Finance Tower, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China

Wen Global Announces the First Annual Global Med Tech Conference and Expo 2022!

In Response to the Medical Equipment Shortages Caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Medical Event Organizer Wen Global Resolved to Address the Situation by Inviting Top Experts and Researchers to Offer Insights and Propose Solutions.
 

The COVID-19 pandemic has thoroughly tested the global infrastructure of the medical resource exchange, though the largely disconcerting results are eased with hope and ripe with opportunities. Logistics problems, raw material and equipment shortages, and resource disparities have strained the medical establishment worldwide, exacerbating the existing problems in low-income countries. At the same time, resourcefulness and creative innovation in the area of medical technology as well as other industries have helped mitigate the pandemic-induced shortages thus far. The Global Med Tech Conference and Expo 2022 organized by Wen Global Solutions Inc aims to help confront the issues by bringing together some of the most prominent experts and researchers in medical technology, logistics, public health, and other related areas to participate in a global conference, held both physically and virtually 10-12 October 2022 in Kingkey Finance Tower, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China, as well as online.

Logistics problems and shortages put a strain on the medical manufacturers, in the United States and worldwide, especially affecting countries that have historically struggled with obtaining medical resources. Global trade flow between east and west based on consumer demand has been out of balance, potentially resulting in fluctuating prices and logistics backlogs (1). Shortages of health care supplies proved to be able to quickly jump from a nuisance to a life-or-death proposition, both in the U.S. and globally (2).

Examples abound. The logjam at the ports of California has resulted in shortages of such essential products as computer chips, paper products, and other items, especially affecting medical manufacturers (3). The FDA Device Shortage List now includes such categories of devices as dialysis-related products, PPE, testing supplies and equipment, ventilation-related products (4). The early shortage of masks and gloves has widened to include such items as exam tables, heart defibrillators, and even crutches and IV poles (5). According to The French Health Agency (ANSM), as of 8 October 2021, critically important medical devices were in shortage (6).

Importantly, individuals and corporations with more financial resources have been able to procure the scarce commodities more successfully, presenting both an open market opportunity and a need for improved trade policies. For example, private hospitals have outnumbered public hospitals in China, and more affluent patients are likely to favor private hospitals for their medical needs (7). Hence the opportunity to sell more to private hospitals. At the same time, the shortage of computer chips has put medical manufacturers in competition with bigger companies with more clout, such as non-medical manufacturers, indicating the need for policy intervention (8).

Some regions of the world have been historically underserved, and the pandemic has exacerbated the situation (22). For certain medicines, exports from India to sub-Saharan Africa decreased in the mid-2020, and higher volumes were instead exported to North America in that period (9). Such resource grabs by high-income countries will likely continue to have devastating effects on low-income countries in the era of COVID-19.

Nevertheless, the human spirit of resourcefulness and innovation provides a glimpse of hope for a better future, even in the face of the global pandemic. For example, some automotive manufacturers in China have retooled to med tech as their western rivals have struggled against production constraints (10). That said, full localization of the medical device market in China is impractical, as imports from foreign manufacturers still play an important role in disseminating new innovations and technology in the industry (11).

Creativity and innovation in the era of Covid do not stop there. Other examples include:

The shortages have also called for policy changes, actual and projected. COVID-19 medical supply shortages led to extraordinary trade and industrial policy (with a focus on China, the European Union, and the United States) (18). The Food and Drug Administration has called for new powers and more funding to improve its ability to prevent medical device shortages (19). New regulations have been made to help track, prevent and mitigate shortages of key health products in Canada, including drugs and medical devices (20). The medtech lobby has been pushing for a policy to prioritize the supply of chips to medical device manufacturers (21).

The Global Med Tech Convention and Expo 2022 is our response to these novel developments and data. Together, we can identify and realize opportunities, tackle difficulties, and contribute to resolving discrepancies. To learn more about GMT 2022, please visit this page.

References

(1). Polar Seal. (2021). The ups and downs of the medical device market in 2022. Polarseal.net. Retrieved from: https://www.polarseal.net/blog/medical-device-market/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=medical-device-market

(2). Reed, T. (2021). Health care plagued by new supply chain shortages. Axios.com. Retrieved from: https://www.axios.com/health-care-plagued-by-new-supply-chain-shortages-4366675c-a984-483d-8996-ce70cf8b3656.html

(3). Hwang, K. (2021). Supply chain woes trigger shortages of critical medical devices. calmatters.org. Retrieved from: https://calmatters.org/health/2021/11/medical-supplies-shortage-california/

(4). FDA. (2021). Medical device shortages during the covid-19 public health emergency. FDA.gov. Retrieved from: https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/coronavirus-covid-19-and-medical-devices/medical-device-shortages-during-covid-19-public-health-emergency

(5). Aeppel, T. (2021). COVID creates shortages of an array of U.S. medical supplies. Reuters.com. Retrieved from: https://www.reuters.com/world/the-great-reboot/covid-creates-shortages-an-array-us-medical-supplies-2021-09-20/

(6). Yeni, J. & Arrighi-Savoie, C. (2021). France: Fight against health products shortages. Globalcompliancenews.com. Retrieved from: https://www.globalcompliancenews.com/2021/12/01/france-fight-against-health-products-shortages-23112021/

(7). Ye, S. (2021). Opportunities and risks in the world's second biggest medical device market, China. Omdia. Retrieved from : https://insights.omnia-health.com/insurance/opportunities-and-risks-worlds-second-biggest-medical-device-market-china

(8). Goodman, P. S. (2021). How the supply chain upheaval became a life-or-death threat. NYTimes.com. Retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/09/business/supply-chain-medical-device-shortages.html

(9). McDonnell,A., Pisani, E., Singhvi, S., Chalkidou, K., & Yadav, P. (2021). Shock to the system: Understanding global medical supply, shortages in COVID-19 crisis, and how to prepare for future disruptions. CGDEV.org. Retrieved from: https://www.cgdev.org/blog/shock-system-understanding-global-medical-supply-shortages-covid-19-crisis-and-how-prepare

(10). Yu, S., Liu, X., & Mitchell, T. (2020). Chinese companies rush to exploit global medical equipment shortages. Financial Times, FT.com. Retrieved from: https://www.ft.com/content/875d9cf3-b5db-43da-8045-fa28c84cf972

(11). Deloitte. (2021). China's fast-growing medical device market presents huge opportunities for foreign firms. Deloitte.com. Retrieved from: https://www2.deloitte.com/cn/en/pages/life-sciences-and-healthcare/articles/pr-chinese-medical-device-industry-whitepaper.html

(12). Thompson, D. (2021). Supply chain issues bring shortages of drugs, devices to U.S. hospitals. Usnews.com. Retrieved from: https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2021-11-04/supply-chain-issues-bring-shortages-of-drugs-devices-to-us-hospitals

(13). Allen, D. (2021). Medical device manufacturers hit major hurdles—can contract manufacturers help? Mddionline.com. Retrieved from: https://www.mddionline.com/contract-manufacturing/medical-device-manufacturers-hit-major-hurdlescan-contract-manufacturers-help

(14). Setipa, J. (2021). Local production could solve shortages of essential pandemic-fighting equipment. Un.org. Retrieved from: https://www.un.org/technologybank/content/local_production_could_solve_shortages_pandemic_fighting_equipment

(15). Fillat-Gomà, F., Coderch-Navarro, S., Martínez-Carreres, L., Monill-Raya, N., Nadal-Mir, T., Lalmolda, C., Luján, M., de Haro, C., & Blanch, L. (2020). Integrated 3D printing solution to mitigate shortages of airway consumables and personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic. BMC Health Services Research, 20(1), 1-8.

(16). Uwaoma, C. & Mansingh, G. (2018). Proposing a decision support system for automated mobile asthma monitoring in remote areas. Information Technology for Development, 24(2), 301-314.

(17). Kortman, V. (2020). A modern ventilator for Covid-19 patients. Mechanical Engineering, 142(7), 22-23.

(18). Bown, C. P. (2021). How COVID-19 medical supply shortages led to extraordinary trade and industrial policy. Piie.com. Retrieved from: https://www.piie.com/publications/working-papers/how-covid-19-medical-supply-shortages-led-extraordinary-trade-and

(19). Taylor, N. P. (2021). FDA seeks to fix 'great weaknesses' in medical device supply chain. Supplychaindive.com. Retrieved from: https://www.supplychaindive.com/news/fda-seeks-to-fix-great-weaknesses-in-medical-device-supply-chain/603856/

(20). Livingston International. (2021). New amendments to regulations aim to ease drug and medical device shortages. Livingstonintl.com. Retrieved from: https://www.livingstonintl.com/new-amendments-to-regulations-aim-to-ease-drug-and-medical-device-shortages/

(21). Slabodkin, G. (2021).Like 'Whac-A-Mole': GE Healthcare says supply chain woes to last into 2022. Medtechdive.com. Retrieved from: https://www.medtechdive.com/news/ge-healthcare-supply-chain-revenue-down-2022/608892/

(22). Global resource shortages during COVID-19: Bad news for low-income countries. McMahon, Devon E.; Peters, Gregory A.; Ivers, Louise C.; Freeman, Esther E. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 7/6/2020, Vol. 14 Issue 7, p1-3.

(23). Government of Canada. (2022). Medical device shortages: List of shortages. Canada.ca. Retrieved from: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-health-products/medical-devices/shortages/list.html

(24). Matthews, R., Fitzgerald, B., Tendick, M., & Joestgen, J. (2021). Roundtable: Medical device industry trends 2022. Plexus.com. Retrieved from: https://www.plexus.com/en-us/current/articles/medical-device-industry-trends