[Incremental innovation in healthcare in Spain during the COVID-19 pandemic]. / La innovación incremental en salud en España durante la pandemia de la COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: It is important to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on incremental innovation and its protection through industrial property rights, in order to acquiring valuable insights to develop effective public policies and corporate strategies. The objective was to analyze incremental innovations in response to the pandemic that have been protected by industrial property rights, and to examine whether the COVID-19 pandemic had a positive or negative effect on incremental innovation, promoting or inhibiting it. METHODS: Utility models in the health patent class have been used as indicators (01.01.20 to 31.12.21), since the information they provide and their characteristics (requirements of applications and publication) allowed us to obtain preliminary conclusions in the short term. Their frequency of application during the pandemic months was analyzed and compared with an equivalent period immediately before (01.01.18 to 31.12.19). RESULTS: The analysis showed that there had been greater activity in healthcare innovation by all agents (individuals, companies and the public sector). In the pandemic period of 2020-2021, 754 utility models were requested, representing a nearly 40% increase compared to the equivalent period of 2018-2019, of which 284 were identified as pandemic-related innovations, with 59.7% of rights holders being individuals, 36.4% being companies, and only 3.9% being public entities. CONCLUSIONS: In general, incremental innovations require less investment and shorter technology maturation times, which had made it possible to respond, in some cases successfully, to situations of initial shortages of many medical devices, such as ventilators and protective equipment.

OBJETIVO: Es importante comprender cómo la pandemia de COVID-19 ha afectado a la innovación incremental y su protección mediante derechos de propiedad industrial, con el fin de obtener información valiosa para desarrollar políticas públicas y estrategias empresariales. El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar las innovaciones incrementales como respuesta a la pandemia que han sido protegidas por derechos de propiedad industrial, y examinar si la pandemia de la COVID-19 había tenido un efecto positivo o negativo en la innovación incremental, fomentándola o inhibiéndola. METODOS: Se emplearon como indicadores los modelos de utilidad de la clase de patentes del ámbito salud en el periodo entre el 1 de enero de 2020 y el 31 de diciembre de 2021, puesto que la información que proporcionan y sus características (requisitos de solicitud y publicación) permitían extraer algunas conclusiones incipientes en el corto plazo. Se analizó su frecuencia de solicitud durante los meses de pandemia y se comparó con un periodo temporal equivalente inmediatamente anterior (1 de enero de 2018 a 31 de diciembre de 2019). RESULTADOS: El análisis mostró que hubo una mayor actividad de innovación sanitaria por parte de todos los agentes (particulares, empresas y sector público). En el período de la pandemia de 2020-2021, se solicitaron 754 modelos de utilidad, lo que representó un aumento de casi el 40% en comparación con el período equivalente de 2018-2019, de los cuales se identificaron 284 como innovaciones relacionadas con la pandemia, con el 59,7% de los titulares de los derechos siendo personas individuales, el 36,4% siendo empresas y solo el 3,9% siendo entidades públicas. CONCLUSIONES: En general, las innovaciones incrementales requieren menor inversión y plazos de maduración de la tecnología más cortos, lo que permitía responder, en algunos casos exitosamente, a las situaciones de desabastecimiento inicial de muchos productos sanitarios, como respiradores y equipos de protección.

La innovación incremental en salud en España durante la pandemia de la COVID-19 / Incremental innovation in healthcare in Spain during the COVID-19 pandemic

Fundamentos: Es importante comprender cómo la pandemia de COVID-19 ha afectado a la innovación incremental y su protección mediante derechos de propiedad industrial, con el fin de obtener información valiosa para desarrollar políticas públicas yestrategias empresariales. El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar las innovaciones incrementales como respuesta a la pandemia quehan sido protegidas por derechos de propiedad industrial, y examinar si la pandemia de la COVID-19 había tenido un efecto positivo onegativo en la innovación incremental, fomentándola o inhibiéndola. Métodos: Se emplearon como indicadores los modelos de utilidad de la clase de patentes del ámbito salud en el periodo entreel 1 de enero de 2020 y el 31 de diciembre de 2021, puesto que la información que proporcionan y sus características (requisitos desolicitud y publicación) permitían extraer algunas conclusiones incipientes en el corto plazo. Se analizó su frecuencia de solicituddurante los meses de pandemia y se comparó con un periodo temporal equivalente inmediatamente anterior (1 de enero de 2018 a31 de diciembre de 2019). Resultados: El análisis mostró que hubo una mayor actividad de innovación sanitaria por parte de todos los agentes (particulares, empresas y sector público). En el período de la pandemia de 2020-2021, se solicitaron 754 modelos de utilidad, lo que representóun aumento de casi el 40% en comparación con el período equivalente de 2018-2019, de los cuales se identificaron 284 como innovaciones relacionadas con la pandemia, con el 59,7% de los titulares de los derechos siendo personas individuales, el 36,4% siendoempresas y solo el 3,9% siendo entidades públicas. Conclusiones: En general, las innovaciones incrementales requieren menor inversión y plazos de maduración de la tecnologíamás cortos, lo que permitía responder, en algunos casos exitosamente, a las situaciones de desabastecimiento inicial de...(AU)

Background: It is important to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on incremental innovation and its protectionthrough industrial property rights, in order to acquiring valuable insights to develop effective public policies and corporate strategies. Theobjective was to analyze incremental innovations in response to the pandemic that have been protected by industrial property rights,and to examine whether the COVID-19 pandemic had a positive or negative effect on incremental innovation, promoting or inhibiting it.Methods: Utility models in the health patent class have been used as indicators (01.01.20 to 31.12.21), since the information theyprovide and their characteristics (requirements of applications and publication) allowed us to obtain preliminary conclusions in the shortterm. Their frequency of application during the pandemic months was analyzed and compared with an equivalent period immediatelybefore (01.01.18 to 31.12.19).Results: The analysis showed that there had been greater activity in healthcare innovation by all agents (individuals, companiesand the public sector). In the pandemic period of 2020-2021, 754 utility models were requested, representing a nearly 40% increasecompared to the equivalent period of 2018-2019, of which 284 were identified as pandemic-related innovations, with 59.7% of rightsholders being individuals, 36.4% being companies, and only 3.9% being public entities.Conclusions: In general, incremental innovations require less investment and shorter technology maturation times, which hadmade it possible to respond, in some cases successfully, to situations of initial shortages of many medical devices, such as ventilatorsand protective equipment.(AU)

Analysis of factors associated with Grant for PCT national phase entries patent: a mathematical model

We developed a multivariate linear regression model to analyze factors associated with Grant for PCT national phase entries patent, in order to identify patentability success indicators. Information was gathered from the Eurostat and World Intellectual Property Indicators databases (period 2004-2014). Thre regression model were constructed using as response variable: Grant for PCT national phase entries patent in the national phase and considering 11 variables related to R&D funding and research personnel as predictor variables. Multivariate linear regression models were estimated using the Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC). The most influential predictive variables were: Total R&D personnel and researchers by performance sectors, sex and fields of science. The regression coefficient was 0.001 with (P <0.05). In conclusion, the mathematical model shows that the most effective predictors of patentability are qualified R&D personnel

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The virtual patient as a learning tool: a mixed quantitative qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: The use of simulation in medical education has been widely accepted. There are different types of medical simulators that vary in both accuracy to emulate the real world (fidelity) and cost of development or acquisition. There is significant evidence that supports the use of high-fidelity simulators (i.e. mannequins or dummies) to prepare students for clinical environments, less attention has been given to low-fidelity simulators. This article aims to present evidence regarding the effectiveness of a low-fidelity simulator: Virtual Patient (VP), which develops several interactive computer-based clinical scenarios, seeking to promote an alternative learning environment and the development of necessary medical skills such as clinical reasoning in students of medicine. METHODS: A quasi-experimental study was designed to investigate the results on the development of history taking and clinical reasoning skills in a group of undergraduate medical students, in a course devised under the concepts of constructivism in education, which used the Virtual Patient as the fundamental teaching tool. Results were measured through a mixed, quantitative and qualitative study, triangulating the results of the students' skills evaluation when facing a clinical case represented by an actor patient before and after the course. Additionally, the description of the students' and tool's performance was measured by way of a qualitative study. RESULTS: The comparison of the students' skills on the evaluation matrix before-and-after the course evidenced a statistically significant advance (p < 0.01) in all aspects (interview, physical exam, clinical judgment, relevance of medical exams, and presentation of case). Students described the VP as an easy-to-use and motivating tool for learning without stress, especially at the beginning of their career. VP allowed them to create logical and structured processes, to be wrong without consequences, and to review and reassess information available. From the professor perspective, it allowed a better follow-up of the students' learning process and favored reflections on the teaching-learning process. CONCLUSIONS: VP proved to be a valuable and useful tool for the development of clinical reasoning and history taking skills in medical students, as part of a constructivist learning course.

Sexual and reproductive health for young adults in Colombia: teleconsultation using mobile devices.

BACKGROUND: Sexual risk behaviors associated with poor information on sexuality have contributed to major public health problems in the area of sexual and reproductive health in teenagers and young adults in Colombia. OBJECTIVE: To report our experience with the use of DoctorChat Mobile to provide sexual education and information among university students in Bogota, Colombia, and knowledge about the sexual risk factors detected among them. METHODS: A mobile app that allows patients to ask about sexual and reproductive health issues was developed. Sexual and reproductive risk behaviors in a sample of young adults were measured before and after the use of the app through the validated survey Family Health International (FHI) Behavioral Surveillance Survey (BSS) for Use With Adults Between 15 and 49 Years. A nonprobabilistic convenience recruitment was undertaken through the study´s webpage. After completing the first survey, participants were allowed to download and use the app for a 6-month period (intervention), followed by completion of the same survey once again. For the inferential analysis, data was divided into 3 groups (dichotomous data, discrete quantitative data, and ordinal data) to compare the results of the questions between the first and the second survey. The study was carried out with a sample of university students between 18 and 29 years with access to mobile phones. Participation in the study was voluntary and anonymous. RESULTS: A total of 257 subjects met the selection criteria. The preintervention survey was answered by 232 subjects, and 127 of them fully answered the postintervention survey. In total, 54.3% (69/127) of the subjects completed the survey but did not use the app, leaving an effective population of 58 subjects for analysis. Of these subjects, 53% (31/58) were women and 47% (27/58) were men. The mean age was 21 years, ranging between 18 and 29 years. The differences between the answers from both surveys were not statistically significant. The main sexual risk behaviors identified in the population were homosexual intercourse, nonuse of condoms, sexual intercourse with nonregular and commercial partners, the use of psychoactive substances, and lack of knowledge on symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases and HIV transmission. CONCLUSIONS: Although there were no differences between the pre- and postintervention results, the study revealed different risk behaviors among the participating subjects. These findings highlight the importance of promoting high-impact educational strategies on this matter and the importance of providing teenagers and young adults with easily accessible tools with reliable health information, regardless of their socioeconomic status.

Prevalence of suicide risk factors and suicide-related outcomes in the National Mental Health Study, Colombia.

A community survey in 4,426 adults was undertaken as part of the World Mental Health Survey Initiative reporting the prevalence and risk factors for suicide-related outcomes in Colombia. Lifetime prevalence estimates of suicide ideation, plans, attempts, and risk factors for suicide-related outcomes were assessed. Retrospective reports of disorders age-of-onset were used to study associations between primary mental disorders and first onset of suicide-related outcomes. Risks of plans and attempts were highest with ideation early age-of-onset and within the first year. The highest risk for ideation and attempt among ideators occurred in the 18-29 age group. After first employment (defined as the first paid job accepted by the respondent) and presence of mental disorders constituted risk factors. Impulse-control disorders were strongest diagnostic predictors.

[Health care workers' perception of the Internet and mobile technologies in Colombia]. / Percepciones de los trabajadores del sector salud frente a Internet y las tecnologías móviles en Colombia.

In July 2007 in Medellín, Colombia, 1,200 health care professionals were asked to complete a questionnaire: of the 493 who participated, the mean age was 31.2 years; 58.8% were physicians; and 97.6% had Internet access, 60.5% on a daily basis and 27.7%, weekly. The preferred place to access the Internet was from home (58%) or from the work place (12.5%); 98% reported having a cell phone, and of those, 80% were interested in using health education tools via cell phone. These are the first data published regarding Internet and cellular phone penetration among health care workers in Colombia. Acceptance of the Internet and mobile systems as health information tools is gaining, and as such, creating a new opportunity for training and harnessing of these new technologies.

Percepciones de los trabajadores del sector salud frente a Internet y las tecnologías móviles en Colombia / Health care workers' perception of the Internet and mobile technologies in Colombia

In July 2007 in Medellín, Colombia, 1 200 health care professionals were asked to complete a questionnaire: of the 493 who participated, the mean age was 31.2 years; 58.8 percent were physicians; and 97.6 percent had Internet access, 60.5 percent on a daily basis and 27.7 percent, weekly. The preferred place to access the Internet was from home (58 percent) or from the work place (12.5 percent); 98 percent reported having a cell phone, and of those, 80 percent were interested in using health education tools via cell phone. These are the first data published regarding Internet and cellular phone penetration among health care workers in Colombia. Acceptance of the Internet and mobile systems as health information tools is gaining, and as such, creating a new opportunity for training and harnessing of these new technologies.

Web-based asynchronous teleconsulting for consumers in Colombia: a case study.

BACKGROUND: Fourteen years after the reform to Colombia's health system, the promises of universality, improved equity, efficiency, and better quality of care have not materialized. Remote areas remain underserved and access to care very limited. Recognizing teleconsultation as an effective way to improve access to health care and health information, a noncommercial open-access Web-based application for teleconsultation called Doctor Chat was developed. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to report the experience of the Center for Virtual Education and Simulation eHealth (Centro de Educación Virtual y Simulación e-Salud) with open-access Web-based asynchronous teleconsultation for consumers in Colombia. METHODS: A teleconsultation service in Spanish was developed and implemented in 2006. Teleconsultation requests were classified on three axes: (1) the purpose of the query, (2) the specialty, and (3) the geographic area of the query. Content analysis was performed on the free-text queries submitted to Doctor Chat, and descriptive statistics were gathered for each of the data categories (name, email, city, country, age, and gender). RESULTS: From September 2006 to March 2007, there were 270 asynchronous teleconsultations documented from 102 (37.8%) men and 168 (62.2%) women. On average, 1.4 requests were received per day. By age group, the largest number of requests (n = 80; 30%) were from users 24-29 years, followed by users (n = 66; 24%) 18-23 years. Requests were mainly from Colombia (n = 204; 75.6%) but also from Spain (n = 17; 6.3%), Mexico (n = 11; 4.1%), and other countries. In Colombia, 137 requests (67.2%) originated in Bogotá, the nation's capital, 25 (12.4%) from other main cities of the country, 40 (19.7%) from intermediate cities, and 2 (0.7%) from remote areas. The purpose of the majority of requests was for information about symptoms, health-related problems, or diseases (n = 149; 55.2%) and medications/treatments (n = 70; 25.9%). By specialty, information was most requested for gynecology and obstetrics (n = 71; 26%), dermatology (n = 28; 10%), urology (n = 22; 8%), and gastroenterology (n = 18; 7%), with anesthesiology, critical care, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and pathology being the least requested (n = 0; 0%). Overall, sexual and reproductive health (n = 93; 34%) issues constituted the main query subject. The average time to deliver a response was 120 hours in 2006 and 59 hours in 2007. Only 19 out of 270 users (7%) completed a survey with comments and perceptions about the system, of which 18 out of 19 (95%) corresponded to positive perceptions and 1 out of 19 (5%) expressed dissatisfaction with the service. CONCLUSION: The implementation of a Web-based teleconsulting service in Colombia appeared to be an innovative way to improve access to health care and information in the community and encouraged open and explicit discussion. Extending the service to underserved areas could improve access to health services and health information and could potentially improve economic indicators such as waiting times for consultations and the rate of pregnancy among teenagers; however, cultural, infrastructural, and Internet connectivity barriers are to be solved before successful implementation can derive population-wide positive impacts.