This week, Illumina’s board added two independent members; the VA and the FDA agreed to collaborate on supply chain issues; and Think Surgical, Thermo Fisher Scientific and Blue Earth all landed FDA clearances.

Connie Hoy, executive VP of clinical development and regulatory affairs for the Westford, Mass.-based device-maker, explains how the firm handled audits at two separate facilities under the Medical Device Single Audit Program. Hoy details how her MDSAP experiences unfolded, from the time she was first notified – "I thought, 'I'm either going back to bed or I better turn my fierce on,' so I turned my fierce on" – to the very end of each audit, when the company was handed a few auditor findings that were easily fixed. "There’s not one company that cannot pass the MDSAP audit," Hoy insists. Check out her valuable tips and advice – and colorful anecdotes – in this feature article.

2017 proved to be a busy year for medtech M&A activity, with the number of deals rising from 174 in 2016, to 206 in 2017. The year also brought a number of notable acquisitions, including Becton Dickinson's blockbuster $24bn purchase of CR Bard and Dutch health-care giant Philips undertaking an ambitious acquisition spree. Medtech Insight takes a look at the highlights of 2017 and what's in store for 2018.