How does FDA define the terms used in this part?

21 C.F.R. § 803.3
in effectEffective: 2024-07-01
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Some of the terms we use in this part are specific to medical device reporting and reflect the language used in the statute (law). Other terms are more general and reflect our interpretation of the law. This section defines the following terms as used in this part: (a) Ambulatory surgical facility (ASF) means a distinct entity that operates for the primary purpose of furnishing same day outpatient surgical services to patients. An ASF may be either an independent entity (i.e., not a part of a provider of services or any other facility) or operated by another medical entity (e.g., under the common ownership, licensure, or control of an entity). An ASF is subject to this regulation regardless of whether it is licensed by a Federal, State, municipal, or local government or regardless of whether it is accredited by a recognized accreditation organization. If an adverse event meets the criteria for reporting, the ASF must report that event regardless of the nature or location of the medical service provided by the ASF. (b) Become aware means that an employee of the entity required to report has acquired information that reasonably suggests a reportable adverse event has occurred. (1) If you are a device user facility, you are considered to have “become aware” when medical personnel, as defined in this section, who are employed by or otherwise formally affiliated with your facility, obtain information about a reportable event. (2) If you are a manufacturer, you are considered to have become aware of an event when any of your employees becomes aware of a reportable event that is required to be reported within 30 calendar days or that is required to be reported within 5 work days because we had requested reports in accordance with § 803.53(b). You are also considered to have become aware of an event when any of your employees with management or supervisory responsibilities over persons with regulatory, scientific, or technical responsibilities, or whose duties relate to the collection and reporting of adverse events, becomes aware, from any information, including any trend analysis, that a reportable MDR event or events necessitates remedial action to prevent an unreasonable risk of substantial harm to the public health. (3) If you are an importer, you are considered to have become aware of an event when any of your employees becomes aware of a reportable event that is required to be reported by you within 30 days. (c) Caused or contributed means that a death or serious injury was or may have been attributed to a medical device, or that a medical device was or may have been a factor in a death or serious injury, including events occurring as a result of: (1) Failure, (2) Malfunction, (3) Improper or inadequate design, (4) Manufacture, (5) Labeling, or (6) User error. (d) Device user facility means a hospital, ambulatory surgical facility, nursing home, outpatient diagnostic facility, or outpatient treatment facility as defined in this section, which is not a physician's office, as defined in this section. School nurse offices and employee health units are not device user facilities. (e) Distributor means any person (other than the manufacturer or importer) who furthers the marketing of a device from the original place of manufacture to the person who makes final delivery or sale to the ultimate user, but who does not repackage or otherwise change the container, wrapper, or labeling of the device or device package. If you repackage or otherwise change the container, wrapper, or labeling, you are considered a manufacturer as defined in this section. (f) Expected life of a device means the time that a device is expected to remain functional after it is placed into use. Certain implanted devices have specified “end of life” (EOL) dates. Other devices are not labeled as to their respective EOL, but are expected to remain operational through activities such as maintenance, repairs, or upgrades, for an estimated period of time. (g) FDA, we, us, or Agency means the Food and Drug Administration. (h) Five-day report means a medical device report that must be submitted by a manufacturer to us under § 803.53 within 5 work days. (i) Hospital means a distinct entity that operates for the primary purpose of providing diagnostic, therapeutic (such as medical, occupational, speech, physical), surgical, and other patient services for specific and general medical conditions. Hospitals include general, chronic disease, rehabilitative, psychiatric, and other special-purpose facilities. A hospital may be either independent (e.g., not a part of a provider of services or any other facility) or may be operated by another medical entity (e.g., under the common ownership, licensure, or control of another entity). A hospital is covered by this regulation regardless of whether it is licensed by a Federal, State, municipal or local government or whether it is accredited by a recognized accreditation organization. If an adverse event meets the criteria for reporting, the hospital must report that event regardless of the nature or location of the medical service provided by the hospital. (j) Importer means any person who imports a device into the United States and who furthers the marketing of a device from the original place of manufacture to the person who makes final delivery or sale to the ultimate user, but who does not repackage or otherwise change the container, wrapper, or labeling of the device or device package. If you repackage or otherwise change the container, wrapper, or labeling, you are considered a manufacturer as defined in this section. (k) Malfunction means the failure of a device to meet its performance specifications or otherwise perform as intended. Performance specifications include all claims made in the labeling for the device. The intended performance of a device refers to the intended use for which the device is labeled or marketed, as defined in § 801.4 of this chapter. (l) Manufacturer means any person who manufactures, prepares, propagates, compounds, assembles, or processes a device by chemical, physical, biological, or other procedure. The term includes any person who either: (1) Repackages or otherwise changes the container, wrapper, or labeling of a device in furtherance of the distribution of the device from the original place of manufacture; (2) Initiates specifications for devices that are manufactured by a second party for subsequent distribution by the person initiating the specifications; (3) Manufactures components or accessories that are devices that are ready to be used and are intended to be commercially distributed and intended to be used as is, or are processed by a licensed practitioner or other qualified person to meet the needs of a particular patient; or (4) Is the U.S. agent of a foreign manufacturer. (m) Manufacturer or importer report number. This number uniquely identifies each individual adverse event report submitted by a manufacturer or importer. This number consists of the following three parts: (1) The FDA registration number for the manufacturing site of the reported device, or the registration number for the importer. If the manufacturing site or the importer does not have an establishment registration number, we will assign a temporary MDR reporting number until the site is registered in accordance with part 807 of this chapter. We will inform the manufacturer or importer of the temporary MDR reporting number; (2) The four-digit calendar year in which the report is submitted; and (3) The five-digit sequence number of the reports submitted during the year, starting with 00001. (For example, the complete number will appear as follows: 1234567-2011-00001.) (n) MDR means medical device report. (o) MDR reportable event (or reportable event) means: (1) An event that user facilities become aware of that reasonably suggests that a device has or may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury or (2) An event that manufacturers or importers become aware of that reasonably suggests that one of their marketed devices: (i) May have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury, or (ii) Has malfunctioned and that the device or a similar device marketed by the manufacturer or importer would be likely to cause or contribute to a death or serious injury if the malfunction were to recur. (p) Medical personnel means an individual who: (1) Is licensed, registered, or certified by a State, territory, or other governing body, to administer health care; (2) Has received a diploma or a degree in a professional or scientific discipline; (3) Is an employee responsible for receiving medical complaints or adverse event reports; or (4) Is a supervisor of these persons. (q) Nursing home means: (1) An independent entity (i.e., not a part of a provider of services or any other facility) or one operated by another medical entity (e.g., under the common ownership, licensure, or control of an entity) that operates for the primary purpose of providing: (i) Skilled nursing care and related services for persons who require medical or nursing care; (ii) Hospice care to the terminally ill; or (iii) Services for the rehabilitation of the injured, disabled, or sick. (2) A nursing home is subject to this regulation regardless of whether it is licensed by a Federal, State, municipal, or local government or whether it is accredited by a recognized accreditation organization. If an adverse event meets the criteria for reporting, the nursing home must report that event regardless of the nature or location of the medical service provided by the nursing home. (r) Outpatient diagnostic facility means: (1) A distinct entity that: (i) Operates for the primary purpose of conducting medical diagnostic tests on patients, (ii) Does not assume ongoing responsibility for patient care, and (iii) Provides its services for use by other medical personnel. (2) Outpatient diagnostic facilities include outpatient facilities providing radiography, mammography, ultrasonography, electrocardiography, magnetic resonance imaging, computerized axial tomography, and in vitro testing. An outpatient diagnostic facility may be either independent (i.e., not a part of a provider of services or any other facility) or operated by another medical entity (e.g., under the common ownership, licensure, or control of an entity). An outpatient diagnostic facility is covered by this regulation regardless of whether it is licensed by a Federal, State, municipal, or local government or whether it is accredited by a recognized accreditation organization. If an adverse event meets the criteria for reporting, the outpatient diagnostic facility must report that event regardless of the nature or location of the medical service provided by the outpatient diagnostic facility. (s) Outpatient treatment facility means a distinct entity that operates for the primary purpose of providing nonsurgical therapeutic (medical, occupational, or physical) care on an outpatient basis or in a home health care setting. Outpatient treatment facilities include ambulance providers, rescue services, and home health care groups. Examples of services provided by outpatient treatment facilities include the following: Cardiac defibrillation, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, pain control, dialysis, speech or physical therapy, and treatment for substance abuse. An outpatient treatment facility may be either independent (i.e., not a part of a provider of services or any other facility) or operated by another medical entity (e.g., under the common ownership, licensure, or control of an entity). An outpatient treatment facility is covered by this regulation regardless of whether it is licensed by a Federal, State, municipal, or local government or whether it is accredited by a recognized accreditation organization. If an adverse event meets the criteria for reporting, the outpatient treatment facility must report that event regardless of the nature or location of the medical service provided by the outpatient treatment facility. (t) Patient of the facility means any individual who is being diagnosed or treated and/or receiving medical care at or under the control or authority of the facility. This includes employees of the facility or individuals affiliated with the facility who, in the course of their duties, suffer a device-related death or serious injury that has or may have been caused or contributed to by a device used at the facility. (u) Physician's office means a facility that operates as the office of a physician or other health care professional for the primary purpose of examination, evaluation, and treatment or referral of patients. Examples of physician offices include: Dentist offices, chiropractor offices, optometrist offices, nurse practitioner offices, school nurse offices, school clinics, employee health clinics, or freestanding care units. A physician's office may be independent, a group practice, or part of a Health Maintenance Organization. (v) Remedial action means any action other than routine maintenance or servicing of a device where such action is necessary to prevent recurrence of a reportable event. (w) Serious injury means an injury or illness that: (1) Is life-threatening, (2) Results in permanent impairment of a body function or permanent damage to a body structure, or (3) Necessitates medical or surgical intervention to preclude permanent impairment of a body function or permanent damage to a body structure. Permanent means irreversible impairment or damage to a body structure or function, excluding trivial impairment or damage. (x) User facility report number means the number that uniquely identifies each report submitted by a user facility to manufacturers and to us. This number consists of the following three parts: (1) The user facility's 10-digit Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) number (if the CMS number has fewer than 10 digits, fill the remaining spaces with zeros); (2) The four-digit calendar year in which the report is submitted; and (3) The four-digit sequence number of the reports submitted for the year, starting with 0001. (For example, a complete user facility report number will appear as follows: 1234560000-2011-0001. If a user facility has more than one CMS number, it must select one that will be used for all of its MDR reports. If a user facility has no CMS number, it should use all zeros in the appropriate space in its initial report (e.g., 0000000000-2011-0001). We will assign a number for future use and send that number to the user facility. This number is used in our record of the initial report, in subsequent reports, and in any correspondence with the user facility. If a facility has multiple sites, the primary site may submit reports for all sites and use one reporting number for all sites if the primary site provides the name, address, and CMS number for each respective site.) (y) Work day means Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. (z) [Reserved] (aa) Human cell, tissue, or cellular or tissue-based product (HCT/P) regulated as a device means an HCT/P as defined in § 1271.3(d) of this chapter that does not meet the criteria in § 1271.10(a) and that is also regulated as a device. (bb) Unique device identifier (UDI) means an identifier that adequately identifies a device through its distribution and use by meeting the requirements of § 830.20 of this chapter. A unique device identifier is composed of: (1) A device identifier—a mandatory, fixed portion of a UDI that identifies the specific version or model of a device and the labeler of that device; and (2) A production identifier—a conditional, variable portion of a UDI that identifies one or more of the following when included on the label of the device: (i) The lot or batch within which a device was manufactured; (ii) The serial number of a specific device; (iii) The expiration date of a specific device; (iv) The date a specific device was manufactured. (v) For an HCT/P regulated as a device, the distinct identification code required by § 1271.290(c) of this chapter.

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