The UK’s equivalent of the FDA has named a prominent British anesthesiologist as its top medical devices regulator.
The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, or MHRA, appointed Dr. Peter Nightingale as chairman of the newly formed Devices Expert Advisory Committee, or DEAC. Nightingale is a former president of both the Royal College of Anaesthetists and the Intensive Care Society. He also served as vice chairman of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges.
DEAC was created in response to a government report that called for stronger regulatory oversight of the medical devices industry, which has been rocked in recent years by scandals involving faulty devices. The committee will replace the MHRA’s Committee on the Safety of Devices.
“The new committee will be responsible for providing independent, expert strategic advice to the agency in support of its role to ensure that medical devices are acceptably safe and are used both safely and effectively,” the MHRA said, in a press release. “It will also support the agency in developing and maintaining collaborative relationships with clinical professional bodies.”