Maximizing the Benefits of Medical-Engineering Integration: Beijing Jishuitan Hospital's Empowerment Reform Journey

Med-Eng Convergencehas become the new trend and consensus in medical innovation.

However, this is not easy, as two core issues lie directly ahead:First, the effective integration of the two,Whether “medical” or “engineering,” both belong to different systems, making it difficult to efficiently integrate the two;Second, the current pathway for medical-engineering integration remains unclear.The vast majority of innovative projects are in the exploratory phase, with relatively slow progress and high risks.

Even so, China is not without its pioneers in exploring how to better integrate medicine and engineering.Beijing Jishuitan Hospital...will have substantial “say.”

On one hand, in terms of attention, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital is among the first batch of pilot units for the reform of granting rights to job-related scientific and technological achievements by the Ministry of Science and Technology, occupying a pioneering position in the field of medical-engineering integration; on the other hand, in terms of translation outcomes, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital currentlyA total of 653 valid authorized patents,2020-2021 Technology Transfer RevenueOver RMB 100 million.

So, what exactly has Beijing Jishuitan Hospital done right in the field of medical-engineering translation? Recently, at the "2022 Jishuitan Forum – Medical-Engineering Interdisciplinary and Achievement Transformation Forum,"Yu Yang, Vice President of Beijing Jishuitan HospitalShared in-depth insights on the topic of “Practice of Scientific and Technological Achievement Transformation and Empowerment Reform at Beijing Jishuitan Hospital.”

The following is a verbatim transcript of the speech delivered by President Yu Yang, provided for the convenience of readers.VCBeat Orange BureauEditorial revisions were made to the text without altering its original meaning:

To break the ice, policy must lead the way. In this regard, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital has never relaxed its efforts, either in awareness or in execution.

First, establish systems and mechanisms for the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements.Beijing Jishuitan Hospital has repeatedly revised its own measures for the transformation of scientific and technological achievements in accordance with national and Beijing municipal policies, continuously updating them, and finally promulgated the《Beijing Jishuitan Hospital Measures for the Administration of Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements》, to comprehensively manage hospitals in terms of innovation and translation from both macroscopic and microscopic perspectives.

Secondly, clarify the process for translating research findings into practical applications.Within the existing technology transfer framework at Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, the creators of research findings must first express their intent to commercialize the technology and draft a preliminary transfer agreement. This document is then submitted for review by the creator’s department and the Science and Technology Division, requiring signatures from both the department head and the director of the Science and Technology Division. Subsequently, hospital attorneys conduct a legal review, provide feedback, and the agreement is revised in accordance with their recommendations.

After the revisions are completed, the matter shall be submitted for deliberation and argumentation to relevant departments, including supervisory leadership, finance, audit, and discipline inspection, followed by the handling of any objections raised during the public notice period. Subsequently, the Dean’s Office will discuss and approve the proposal. Finally, details such as the name of the scientific and technological achievement and the proposed transaction price will be publicly disclosed within the entire institution for 15 days. If no objections are raised upon the expiration of the disclosure period, the technology transfer contract may be formally executed.

Finally, rationally distribute the proceeds from the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements.This stage is particularly critical in the entire process of translating medical innovations into practice. The United States was able to increase its translation rate from 5% to 80% within a decade by relying on"The Bayh-Dole Act", and this is regarded as“The Most Inspiring Legislation Enacted in the United States Over the Past Half-Century”, primarily addressing the process of patent commercialization"Whoever funds it, owns it."the core issue.

So, how can we effectively encourage scientific researchers to innovate? The most direct approach is to ensure that everyone receives a “fair and reasonable” share of the rewards.

Within the allocation system of Beijing Jishuitan Hospital,70% belongs to the inventors and their team,The remaining 30% is allocated to the hospital, with 10% retained by the department where the achievement was made to further promote its R&D activities, and the other 20% retained by the hospital to support the operations of the Technology Transfer Office and serve as a commercialization fund.

It is worth mentioning that, on an individual level, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital has formulated preferential tax policies,The reward may be included at 50% in the scientific and technical personnel’s monthly “income from wages and salaries.”Pay individual income tax in accordance with the law.

To foster a favorable environment that encourages technological innovation, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital has also implemented certain tax incentives.Policy Guidance. First, the hospital fully reimburses all patent maintenance applications, including agency fees, and offers substantial rewards for patents and scientific research achievements. Second, it has established an incubation fund for medical-engineering interdisciplinary cultivation projects. Currently, 48 projects have been approved, involving R&D teams composed of personnel from more than 20 medical technology departments. Each project engages experts and representatives from universities, enterprises, and drug regulatory authorities.

With policies as the foundation, the next step is to consider the issue of transformation models.

On June 24, 2020, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital jointly developed with universities and enterprisesChina's First Orthopedic Surgical RobotFeatured in a special issue of Nature. This is just one facet; over the past year or two, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital has spearheaded collaborations with multiple engineering universities and enterprises, successfully translating into clinical practice several cutting-edge technologies, including robotic systems for reduction of pelvic and hip fractures, intelligent robotic assistance systems for anesthesia puncture, and intelligent ward-round robots.

And this is inseparable from“Three Elements–Three Cycles”Model: So, how exactly does this model operate?

Specifically, the “three elements” are“Med-Engineering-Enterprise” Collaboration Guided by Clinical Medical Needs. Driven by the clinical needs of hospitals, research is conducted based on fundamental university disciplines, followed by engineering design of core technologies, and ultimately, enterprises commercialize these technologies.

Meanwhile, the “three-cycle” model encompasses clinical medicine-based initiation, collaborative R&D between medical and engineering disciplines, and real-time product feedback.“Medical-Engineering R&D Cycle”; market-seeking orientation, manufacturing process optimization, and product technical services“Industrial Enterprise Regulatory Cycle”; clinical application of products, market promotion, and guidance for personalized medicine“Mutual Promotion Cycle Between Healthcare and Industry”。

In this model, the most critical aspect is to embark on the path toward commercialization from the very inception of project implementation; only in this way can early-stage funding investments be prevented from going to waste.

Last year, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital successfully obtained approval to establish the Beijing Engineering Research Center. By fostering joint development between medical institutions and enterprises, and collaborating with universities and research institutes, the center has promoted multi-party collaboration among medical, engineering, and industrial sectors. This effort has ultimately created an innovative closed loop encompassing clinical needs, product development, and clinical validation and translational application, thereby jointly building an open, collaborative innovation ecosystem.

How to make the medical-engineering model operate more effectively is a question that healthcare institutions worldwide are seeking to answer. In this regard, foreign countries are indeed ahead of us. A systematic analysis reveals that these global medical centers have basically achieved a balance of “what to do” and “what not to do,” namely“Act” in areas that can truly drive innovation, and “refrain from acting” in areas beyond one’s capabilities that may hinder innovation.

Beijing Jishuitan Hospital has gradually recognized the pivotal role of “empowerment” throughout this process during its continuous exploration.

Therefore, after Beijing Jishuitan Hospital became a pilot unit in 2020, the team jointly engaged a legal team specializing in intellectual property to systematically review relevant policies. They conducted extensive explorations from both legal and policy perspectives and began accelerating implementation over the past two years.

And throughout the entire “empowerment” process, the most core issue is that,Who ultimately owns the intellectual property rights?

The research findings were the result of years of dedicated effort by the R&D team, particularly for physicians who, burdened with heavy clinical workloads, largely conducted these studies in their spare time.Therefore, the intellectual property rights of the project are jointly owned by myself and the hospital, or assigned to me for future implementation and commercialization, which would provide greater incentive.

In response, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital has developed a comprehensive set of supporting documents, including the “Implementation Plan for the Reform of Empowering Scientific and Technological Achievements at Beijing Jishuitan Hospital (Trial)” issued in February 2021. This plan addresses key issues such as the scope of empowerment, procedural workflows, decision-making mechanisms for management, oversight and supervision, and handling of breaches of contract.

After resolving the issue of intellectual property ownership, the next consideration isWhat Types of Scientific Research Achievements Are Suitable for Empowerment?

This necessitates that hospitals conduct due diligence, primarily encompassing assessments of the technological status, the profile of potential transferees, and the conditions for granting rights. Through these investigations, hospitals evaluate whether the R&D outcomes meet four core criteria: clear ownership, promising application prospects, identified transferees, and strong willingness among researchers to facilitate technology transfer.

Following the assessment, the next step is the specific implementation of “empowerment.”。

The entire process is based on the hospital achievement database established in the early stage, from which projects with potential value were screened out, followed by field visits.

To further refine the empowerment initiative, multiple rounds of discussion and evaluation of the empowerment plan will be conducted. Experts in technology transfer from the Municipal Science and Technology Commission, universities, and research institutes, as well as legal experts, will be invited to participate in successive rounds of review. Their expert opinions will be consolidated into a comprehensive plan, which will then be submitted to the Office Meeting and the Party Committee for approval, followed by internal public notification within the institution.

In the execution of empowerment contracts, partial ownership rights are granted for job-related scientific and technological achievements. With reference to the hospital’s distribution ratio for transformation rewards, the hospital and the R&D team are allocated 30% and 70% equity interests, respectively. Upon signing the empowerment agreement, the R&D team and the hospital become joint patent holders. The transferee simultaneously issues a letter of intent for technology transfer, followed by the final signing of the technology transfer contract.

Currently, for the vast majority of medical institutions in China, “integration of medicine and engineering” remains a significant challenge; even with policy support, funding, platforms, and talent in place, the benefits realized at this stage are still minimal.

Therefore, empowerment may offer a viable pathway, as it indeed provides domestic medical institutions with a new approach to valuing intellectual property for equity participation and simplifies the procedures for equity-based incentives.

However, the entire empowerment procedure is relatively complex, and simplified pathways still need to be explored. In addition, the empowerment agreement should clearly stipulate binding terms, such as the requirement that outcomes be commercialized within one year.

This is inevitably a complex and arduous process, requiring more than just forward momentum; it demands that medical centers continuously reflect on and summarize their experiences while advancing, and make timely adjustments to their course. Only in this way can they at the earliest stage explore an optimal path for medical-engineering translation that aligns with their own institutional development.