An Inside Look at Kinetic Concepts, Inc.

Today’s Wound Clinic interviewed Dr. Ronald P. Silverman, FACS Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President, Kinetic Concepts, Inc. (KCI) to learn more about the company’s goals and initiatives.

Today’s Wound Clinic (TWC):How long have you (personally) been in wound care and how did you enter this area of healthcare?
Dr. Ronald P. Silverman (RS): I began my residency training in surgery at the Massachusetts General Hospital/ Harvard in 1994 where I ultimately went on to sub specialize in plastic and reconstructive surgery. Wound care has been a part of my practice ever since that time. I went on to practice plastic and reconstructive surgery (which includes wound care) full time for 10 years at the University of Maryland Medical Center (starting in 2000) where I became Chief of Plastic Surgery in 2006. During my time at the University of Maryland, I had a clinical and research interest in finding better ways to reconstruct patients with wounds from injury or cancer. In 2010 I took the position of Chief Medical Officer of Kinetic Concepts, Inc. (KCI), which has always been a leader in the field of reconstructive surgery and wound healing.

TWC: Tell our readers something that makes your job unique or interesting?
RS: I am privileged to serve as KCI's CMO while continuing to treat patients through my surgical practice at the University of Maryland. In these two roles, I am in the unique position of seeing multiple sides of the healthcare equation—the research and development aspect along with the provider and patient implications. This enables me to be more effective in both realms, offering a true surgeon's perspective to KCI and its clinical pipeline, as well as staying at the forefront of innovations that can make a difference in my patients' lives.

TWC: What do you find most rewarding about providing your products/services to medical directors and wound care clinicians?
RS: It may sound trite, but it makes me feel good to know that we are truly enabling a better healing experience for patients around the globe. Last year, for example, we entered Japan—the second largest medical device market in the world—with V.A.C.® Therapy. We estimated at the time that there were more than 100,000 wounds that were appropriate for V.A.C.® Therapy, but they were either going untreated or undergoing treatments that delivered fewer positive outcomes. There's a business side to strategic moves like that, yes, but I can honestly say that the people of KCI—myself included—are galvanized by the potential for improving the lives of more people through our healing technologies and therapies.

TWC: Describe the mission/vision of your company.
RS: KCI is dedicated to helping others harness the power of the body to heal and regenerate. We provide therapies and technologies in the areas of advanced wound healing, regenerative medicine, and pressure ulcer prevention that provide significant clinical and economic benefit. Our vision is to be recognized globally as a premier provider of innovative, high technology medical therapies and products that improve patients’ lives and deliver significant clinical and economic benefit.

TWC: How many different types/series of products or services do you make?
RS: KCI has three business units, LifeCell™, our regenerative medicine unit; Active Healing Solutions™, our wound-healing unit; and Therapeutic Support Systems, our surfaces unit. Within each of these business units are a variety of products that help harness the body's ability to restore and regenerate, as mentioned above.

TWC: Which would you say is your highest selling product or service, and why do you feel it is so popular?
RS: Many in the industry would consider V.A.C.® Therapy, which promotes wound healing through Negative Pressure Wound Therapy, KCI's "flagship" product. It has been the treatment of choice for well over 4 million patients around the world since KCI introduced the technology in 1996. V.A.C.® Therapy boasts more published clinical evidence than any other form of NPWT, and it has truly re-written the wound healing playbook. But that's just one area in which KCI is innovating; we've seen tremendous interest in our regenerative medicine efforts as well. Our goal is not about keeping up with the competition but about innovating and being a game changer.

TWC: What would you say makes your company unique?
RS: Our goal at KCI—especially in our Clinical and Research & Development departments—is to change the face of clinical medicine by doing something better and different. We don't think we've innovated until our customers and patients tell us we have. That drive—to enable more positive clinical and economic outcomes by doing something that hasn't been attempted before—drives us. I really believe that KCI has one of the best opportunities in the medical device arena to change lives.

TWC: How do you make sure that clinicians are properly trained in your products or services?
RS: KCI has an extremely robust professional education program. For example, KCI’s dedicated clinical education managers educated more than 50,000 clinicians globally just last year. We regularly hold interactive training sessions all over the world for the medical community; nearly 240,000 continuing education participants have participated in KCI training sessions since 2002. Those types of events are in addition to the high quality attention clinicians receive from our dedicated sales force, many of which are clinically trained and certified.

TWC: Please tell our readers something about your company that they do not know.
RS:I think a lot of people don’t realize that KCI began as a surfaces company 35 years ago, starting as an office of just a few people led by an emergency room physician and working out of a small apartment. High-tech surfaces—beds, really—are where we started. We have pioneered these technologies for use in bariatric patients, patients with pulmonary complications, and we’ve developed surfaces for treating and preventing skin integrity problems, such as pressure ulcers. Most recently, KCI’s Therapeutic Support Systems business unit introduced Skin IQ™ Microclimate Manager for the prevention and management of pressure ulcers. This waterproof, vapor-permeable mattress cover is a bacterial and viral barrier that works intuitively to draw excess moisture away from the skin surface and helps to reduce skin temperature. This is just one example of the very sophisticated solutions TSS has developed for a variety of patient populations.

TWC: Please describe any of your company’s goals for the future that you would like to highlight.
RS: Over the past year, KCI has been focused on broadening our pipeline and looking for new opportunities to diversify. We have a reputation as a leader in the field of Negative Pressure Wound Therapy, which is important—and I think, well-deserved—but we are focusing on more now than NPWT alone. In 2010, for example, we entered into a number of proprietary technology licenses, including the revolutionary Novadaq SPY® diagnostic imaging system that enables surgeons to see blood perfusion in tissue during surgery. We also just recently announced an important deal with Wright Medical enabling KCI to sell a biologic, GraftJacket® Regenerative Tissue Matrix, for chronic wound care. We have products in negative pressure surgical management (Prevena® Incision Management System) and we are getting into the Animal Health sector. All of these efforts, in various ways, support our efforts to be a part of the entire continuum of wound care, providing solutions for clinicians throughout the whole process.

TWC: Looking ahead, what are some initiatives that the company is working on for 2011 and beyond?
RS: KCI is very interested in making wound care more portable and convenient for patients and clinicians, without sacrificing the great outcomes associated with V.A.C.® Therapy. In keeping with that vision, we were excited last year to launch the V.A.C.Via™ Therapy System on a global level. The V.A.C.Via™ Therapy System is a next-generation negative pressure wound therapy solution that offers patients and the medical community a combination of a light, portable and intuitive technology that can help patients seamlessly transition from NPWT use in an institutional setting to use in the home. And we’re excited this year with the planned introduction of the V.A.C.Ulta™ Therapy System, which will combine traditional NPWT treatment with fluid instillation capability. For 2011 and beyond, we’re focused on expanding on this type of technology, offering smaller and user-friendlier devices with patients in mind. We at KCI envision a future of even greater mobility and off-the-shelf accessibility for more and more wound types.

TWC: Are there any trends in wound care that you and your executives are monitoring closely?
RS: There is no question that healthcare is changing in response to evolving patient knowledge and demands, changing demographics, expanding bodies of useful research and fiscal realities. Healthcare is increasingly moving from institutional settings to the home setting. Given this dynamic, home healthcare is becoming an even more central component of the U.S. health care continuum—and KCI is focused on ensuring that we are fully supporting homecare providers in delivering optimal patient care. We at KCI recognize that, now more than ever before, devices used in the home must have product designs that are as user-friendly as possible, labeling that is as clear and helpful as possible, and support networks that are as accessible as possible.

TWC: What challenge are you seeing in wound care and how is your company approaching this challenge?
RS: Certainly, we are watching the continuing healthcare reform debate in the U.S. closely. The competitive bidding effort by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has our attention as well. Bottom line, we want to continue to deliver proven clinical outcomes and cost efficiencies to customers, and these two issues are potential roadblocks to following through on that commitment. We’ve been in business since 1976, so we’ve seen lots of changes in the health care system, and we’re working with policymakers and healthcare providers to find ways of more efficiently treating patients as these issues evolve.

TWC: What do you feel are the most important aspects of what your company provides to wound care clinics?
RS: Our Active Healing Solutions™ business offers an exclusive combination of technology, support and proven results. We call it 360 degrees of healing. In addition to the innovative therapy systems and dressings and the most evidence-based outcomes in the NPWT field, AHS also offers an unmatched integrated service and delivery model, which includes support through the care continuum provided by on-call clinical experts that offer clinical assistance and education across all care settings.

TWC: How can wound care clinicians get in touch with a representative to learn more about your company and products?
RS: Clinicians can get in touch with a KCI representative 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling 1-800-275-4524. They can also learn more about KCI via our website, www.kci1.com.