The role of medical devices is essential to the healthcare of EU citizens. The diversity and innovativeness of this sector contributes significantly to enhancing the safety, quality and efficacy of healthcare in the EU.
Covering a wide range of products, from simple bandages or sticking plasters to the most sophisticated X-ray equipment, the medical devices sector plays a crucial role in the diagnosis, prevention, monitoring and treatment of diseases. It also helps improve the quality of life of those with disabilities.
The medical devices sector helps save lives by providing innovative health care solutions regarding diagnosis, prevention, monitoring, treatment and alleviation of disease. The sector has become increasingly important for the healthcare of EU citizens and an influencer of expenditure.
The medical devices sector faces many challenges at national, European and international level, which may have an impact on their innovation capacity and overall competitiveness:
Enhancing competitiveness is one of the key objectives of the European Commission. As a result, the Commission regularly liaises with industry associations to explore ways of helping enterprises and maintain growth.
In order to help the sector to overcome both public health and industrial challenges, an ‘Exploratory process on the future of the medical devices sector’ was implemented in 2009.