MESH brings medical invention into radiology training

A new report from IO Lab describes how a hospital-based incubator can give radiology trainees practical experience developing medical technologies. Published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology, the article introduces the Medically Engineered Solutions in Healthcare, or MESH, program at Massachusetts General Hospital. It combines a workspace for building prototypes with instruction in evaluating clinical needs, protecting inventions and developing business plans.

The team designed the program around gaps identified in an informal survey of residents. Most respondents reported discomfort with intellectual property, prototyping and moving research toward clinical use. All respondents reported discomfort with the invention-disclosure process. Those findings helped define the subjects that a practical curriculum would need to address.

The incubator opened in July 2016 within the radiology department. Its equipment includes a three-dimensional printer, computer-aided design software, electronic components and basic fabrication tools. Locating these resources near clinical work gives trainees a place to explore problems they encounter during patient care and discuss them with colleagues.

A one-week core rotation introduces participants to needs assessment, prototyping, patent preparation and business planning. The program also offers a longer development cycle. During its first six months, participants identify and evaluate a clinical need. The next six months focus on building a prototype and considering intellectual property. The sequence gives a clinical observation a defined route toward a testable idea.

The report describes early projects, including a device intended to stabilize probes used in biopsy and ablation procedures. That project progressed to a prototype in about ten months and an invention disclosure in November 2017. These milestones document activity within the program, although they do not establish that a device improves care or is ready for routine use.

The article is a description of program development and early experience. It does not compare participants with an untrained group or measure patient outcomes. The informal needs survey also cannot establish how common these educational gaps are across all residency programs.

For training leaders, MESH offers a practical example of connecting education with access to tools and mentors. Evaluating its broader value will require following what participants learn, whether they retain those skills and how their projects develop. The immediate contribution is an organized setting in which trainees can investigate a clinical problem and begin testing a possible solution.