The Impact of Technology Utilization on Health Research and Development: Case Studies of the Development of Medical Device / 보건행정학회지

ABSTRACT

Background@#Based on that the key function of health technology is improving the quality of healthcare services, our study purports to explore the process of medical device development in detail and to discuss its policy implications. @*Methods@#A total of 12 in-depth interviews were conducted with four groups of industry, hospital, academia, and civil society. All of the interviewees except those from civil society were involved in the new medical device development between 2009 and 2018. We performed a text network analysis and content analysis of the interview data. @*Results@#The frequency and the degree centrality rankings suggested a close association between the utilization issue and the technology development. Similarly, the results of the content analysis showed that the appropriate intervention in the utilization of technology has a direct impact on the progress of development. Under the continuous industrial effort to boost profits by developing new technology, service providers and citizens should be knowledgeable of and make good use of the new technology for the provision of better services. @*Conclusion@#As the development itself would not guarantee the improvement of service quality and better health outcomes, health technology policies should take a more comprehensive view to serve the unmet needs and even to facilitate the technology development.