Medtronic breaks ground on western China Innovation Center

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) said today it has begun work on an Innovation Center in Chengdu, China, slated to open in 2020.

The new Chengdu Innovation Center is being built at the Singapore-Sichuan Hi-Tech Innovation Park in the Sichuan Province and aims to provide clinical training and research platforms for medical workers in the region and neighboring regions.

“Medtronic understands the critical role that rural physicians play in driving the healthcare availability and transformation. As such, we hope to support the growth and development of medical workers in China’s vast central and western regions, help them better understand, grasp and capitalize the frontier technologies, enhance their clinical skills to benefit more patients, and move forward together toward the Healthy China goal,” Medtronic CEO Omar Ishrak said in a prepared statement.

Medtronic said that despite improved clinical training investments, training in China’s western regions “remains insufficient” and has created an average 10-year gap between the maturation period of Chinese physicians and those in developed countries.

“Chengdu is actively fostering innovation within the biopharmaceutical industry, and it’s particularly important to build an open and pragmatic innovation environment. We hope that more international leading platforms, like the Medtronic Innovation Center, can inspire innovation and become a driving force in helping us explore local needs. In turn, we can facilitate stronger connections and collaborations between academia, research institutes, corporations, and the biopharma industry, and enable clinical applications that help convert technology into more valuable medical services,” Chengdu vice mayor Liu Liedong said in a prepared release.

The Fridley, Minn.-based company said it aims for the Chengdu Center to be an advanced “one-stop” clinical training facility to provide training programs.

These programs will cover an array of disciplines including surgery, minimally invasive surgery, intensive care, internal medicine and aesthetics and disease areas including cardiovascular, tumors, respiratory, nervous system, gastrointestinal and renal diseases, the company said.

Medtronic is hopeful for a training capacity of approximately 7,000 individuals at the center.

“The China market presents one of the greatest opportunities for Medtronic. We are ready and eager to continue working with partners in China to explore and solve the country’s healthcare challenges. With the new Medtronic Innovation Center in Chengdu, we will have more resources to mobilize local medical workers to participate in key healthcare initiatives, and eventually strengthen and advance the vital healthcare industry through collective insights, expertise, and skills,” Medtronic greater China prez Chris Lee said in a press release.

Earlier today, Medtronic said it won expanded FDA approval for its Endurant II and IIs stent graft systems designed to treat abdominal aortic aneurysms, now indicated for use in combination with the Heli-FX EndoAnchor system to treat patients with short, hostile aortic neck

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