By Rebekka Spiller - For inventor and CEO Sue Carr, tenacity and determination drive success. The founder of CarrTech Corp. says that challenges helped her envision a revolutionary innovation in health care: the FROG ® needle.
FROG ® stands for Filter Removal of Glass and is the only all-in-one needle designed to filter out glass shards from ampoules prior to administering medication to patients. It offers three main purposes: to ensure that practitioners do not bypass the filtering process, to reduce needle prick injuries and to save time in emergency situations.
Carr’s journey was initiated after deciding to transition from her longtime role as hometown pharmacist to clinical pharmacist for hospitals. After spending time working alongside various doctors and nurses, she noticed a concerning trend.
“There were a lot of times where I was on the floor with the nurses helping them filter because the nurses aren’t always trained and may not know about the glass shards,” says Carr. “It became my passion to make sure that it was being done properly – to make sure that no glass shards entered the patient, and to reduce the chance of needle stick injuries.”
She began conceptualizing FROG ® and pursued her first patent. Initially, she was told that her mold could not be designed. She was introduced to Gilero, a North Carolina-based medical device manufacturer. Gilero in turn introduced her to patent lawyer Kevin Flynn, Esq., who helped her develop her second patent and prototype, which she received in 2018. She also received a National Science Foundation grant after five attempts.
In 2019, she dove into launching CarrTech. Despite the pandemic, her company flourished. One moment that proved pivotal was a pitch competition at Salisbury University, where she won $10,000. Directly afterwards, TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, invested in CarrTech through the Builder Fund, a fund designed to engage and invest in economically underserved founders and communities. Through this program Carr not only received funding, but she also learned the lean-business model and the business model canvas.
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