Clinical Scientist

It started with a simple idea: what if surgery could be less invasive and recovery less painful? Nearly 30 years later, that question still fuels everything we do at Intuitive. As a global leader in robotic-assisted surgery and minimally invasive care, our technologies—like the da Vinci surgical system and Ion—have transformed how care is delivered for millions of patients worldwide.

We’re a team of engineers, clinicians, and innovators united by one purpose: to make surgery smarter, safer, and more human. Every day, our work helps care teams perform with greater precision and patients recover faster, improving outcomes around the world.

The problems we solve demand creativity, rigor, and collaboration. The work is challenging, but deeply meaningful—because every improvement we make has the potential to change a life.

If you’re ready to contribute to something bigger than yourself and help transform the future of healthcare, you’ll find your purpose here.

Primary Function of Position

This position reports to Manager, Medical Sciences and requires a strong candidate with expertise in the analysis of medical literature, data from clinical trials and pre-clinical studies, and sound knowledge of applicable regulations and standards. The position will mainly focus on the development of Clinical Evaluation Plans (CEPs) and Clinical Evaluation Reports (CERs), with a potential for future additional responsibility in the development of other clinical evidence documents. The purpose of this job is to work collaboratively to develop strategies for the creation of CEPs followed by the development of CERs per EU MDR, to meet essential requirements in support of submission for CE Mark application to obtain Declaration of Conformity and EU market clearance, re-certification, and proposed indication/labeling changes. Further, the responsibility includes the development of regular CEP and CER updates to maintain EU product conformance.

Essential Job Duties

• Interact with internal cross-functional teams (engineering, product development, regulatory, post-market surveillance) to define and plan the strategy for the development of CEPs and CERs for new products requiring CE Mark.

• Develop and author clinical documentation for regulatory submissions, mainly key sections of the CEP and the entire CER document.

• Develop and author responses to the requests and questions on the clinical documentation from the regulatory authority. 

• Possess or acquire in-depth knowledge of therapeutic areas, competitor devices, current clinical/market developments, literature review processes and the ability to keep abreast of current literature.

• Participate in and/or perform comprehensive literature searches to develop and maintain in- depth knowledge and understanding of current scientific literature required to support identified product lines and related clinical studies; stay informed about applicable clinical landscapes and trends.

• Provide product guidance and expertise to the clinical librarian to facilitate conducting literature searches on products/product families.

• Review scientific literature and interpret and summarize published data on risks, alternate therapies and device-specific benefits; collect and summarize primary data to support risk assessment.

• Critically appraise scientific literature and write clinical summaries for products and surgical procedures.

• Conduct proofreading, editing, document formatting, review comment integration and document completion/approval activities.

• Manage CEP/CER timelines required by product development teams and global Regulatory Bodies by utilizing appropriate project management tools.

• Serve as the SME and/or functional representative for R&D development activities (e.g., Product or Technology Development Process teams) and support broader Clinical/Medical Affairs activities such as regulatory submissions/responses.

• Perform periodic reviews of risk documentation and product labeling; ensure appropriate updates are implemented.

• Provide clinical perspective and support and guide new product development for CE Mark purposes. May require participation in ongoing core team activities (e.g., weekly meetings) or provide periodic participation and input as needed.

• Support the Clinical Affairs (CA) team with the creation of clinical content for other documents including Investigator brochures, manuscripts, scientific abstracts, conference presentations, and posters based on Intuitive clinical trials.

• Support the CA team with the development and writing of clinical study protocols and Clinical Study Reports (CSRs).

• Ensure compliance with corporate (e.g., SOPs) and regulatory requirements (e.g., GCP and US and OUS guidelines).

Required Skills and Experience

In order to successfully meet the responsibilities of this position, the candidate must possess the following:

• Previous experience in the application of in-depth therapeutic and device knowledge to the development of Clinical Evaluation Plans and Reports.

• Minimum of 2 years of medical writing experience.

• Ability to identify critical information needs and identify roles/individuals to involve in the decision- making process within clinical evaluation assessment and report development.

• Strong experience in conducting literature searches, and review and appraisal of scientific data.

• Demonstrated ability to clearly and effectively communicate verbally and in technical or scientific writing; demonstrated effective scientific writing skills.

• Excellent critical thinking and analytical skills.

• A high level of attention to detail and accuracy.

• Ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams.

• Ability to manage multiple projects across numerous surgical disciplines.

• Strong communication, presentation and interpersonal skills with high attention to detail and organization.

• Strong experience in protocol development, writing clinical sections of documents for regulatory submission and clinical evaluation report writing.

• Ability to learn quickly and self-educate on different surgical specialties as applicable to medical products and procedures (self-starter attitude).

• Consistent dedication and strong work-ethics to meet aggressive timelines and simultaneous management of multiple projects, when necessary.

Required Education and Training

• MD, PhD or M.S. degree in a scientific field.

Preferred Skills and Experience  

• Minimum of 0-2 years of experience in Clinical Evaluation Report (CER) writing in a medical device industry is preferred.

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19.  Details can vary by role.

Intuitive is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees, and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type, without regard to race, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, religion, protected veteran or disability status, genetic information or any other status protected under federal, state, or local applicable laws.

Mandatory Notices

U.S. Export Controls Disclaimer:  In accordance with the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (15 CFR §743.13(b)), some roles at Intuitive Surgical may be subject to U.S. export controls for prospective employees
who are nationals from countries currently on embargo or sanctions status.

Certain information you provide as part of the application will be used for purposes of determining whether Intuitive Surgical will need to (i) obtain an export license from the U.S. Government on your behalf (note: the government’s licensing process can take 3 to 6+ months) or (ii) implement a Technology Control Plan (“TCP”) (note: typically adds 2 weeks to the hiring process).  

For any Intuitive role subject to export controls, final offers are contingent upon obtaining an approved export license and/or an executed TCP prior to the prospective employee’s
start date, which may or may not be flexible, and within a timeframe that does not unreasonably impede the hiring need. If applicable, candidates will be notified and instructed on any requirements for these purposes. 

We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with fair chance laws.

Preference will be given to qualified candidates who do not reside, or plan to reside, in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, or Tennessee.

This position may be filled at a different job level than listed here depending on
business need and/or on the selected candidate’s experience, knowledge and skills.
Compensation will be based primarily on the job level at which the role is filled and the
candidate’s qualifications, consistent with applicable law.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target compensation ranges are listed.