Watson Leaves FDA for Biogen Idec
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| Anthony Watson |
You could say Anthony Watson almost was destined to have a career in medical product safety. His mother was an investigator at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's district office in Boston, and his father still works at the National Institutes of Health.
But after nearly 20 years at the FDA, Watson recently decided to take on a new challenge. Watson—who was director of the Division of Anesthesiology, General Hospital, Respiratory, Infection Control, and Dental Devices at the Office of Device Evaluation within the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH)—has joined Biogen Idec in Cambridge, MA, to concentrate on combination products. He said it represents an exciting opportunity and will allow him to take advantage of his skillset.
Watson joined the FDA in 1994 following a career in the U.S. Navy, where he learned a lot about "taking charge of something that needs to be taken charge of." His mother told him at the time the FDA was looking for engineers—a fact that surprised him. Still, he went in for the interview and was hired as a scientific reviewer at CDRH. He later served as chief of the General Hospital Devices Branch within the Office of Device Evaluation and was in the position he left June 1 for about three and a half years.
During his time at the FDA, Watson saw many changes. There were periods during which the agency concentrated more on enforcement, while at other times, it focused on getting lifesaving products to market faster. Still, he said he has many fond memories of his time at the agency: "I'll always be at heart a fan of the FDA," he reflected.
When asked how he would like to be remembered by his FDA colleagues, Watson said he hoped people saw him as making a lasting impact. "I hope I left the FDA better than when I joined it," he added. And that's something he hopes to accomplish wherever he works—to build something great that can outlast him.
He said his proudest accomplishment at the agency was helping create the reviewer certification program. It began as a project within his division recognizing reviewers who had undergone training, but then CDRH recognized the program's value and instituted it center-wide.
Watson said he regrets that some of the work started during his tenure will not be finished, including initiatives dealing with infusion pump safety, cybersecurity, and interoperability. With regard to infusion pumps, even though work remains, Watson says he is leaving the situation in good hands. "My sadness is tempered with the fact that a dedicated, smart, and conscientious group of professionals will continue this critical work," he told members of AAMI Foundation's Healthcare Technology Safety Institute (HTSI).
Those who have worked with Watson sang his praises. "His leadership, articulate and insightful communication, principled analysis, and leverage of his engineering and Navy skillset and safety-focus, has changed the world for the better," said AAMI Board Member Nat Sims, MD, anesthesiologist from Partners Healthcare. Sims has served with Watson on HTSI's Infusion Systems Steering Committee.
"Tony's support gave those of us in the infusion safety domain the courage to reach higher, raise the bar, and 'elevate the discussion,'" Sims added.
AAMI News: June 2013, Vol. 48, No. 6