Healthcare technology

Johnston K, Buxton MJ, Jones DR, Fitzpatrick R (1999). Assessing the costs of healthcare technologies in clinical trials. Health Technol Assess 3 > 6. 

Center for Healthcare Technologies at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, potentially capable to measure pH at or near the stroke site29. The probe is the distal end of a 125 pm fibre tapered up to a diameter of 50 pm. A fluorescent pH-indicator, seminaphthorhodamine-1-carboxylate, is embedded inside a silica sol-gel matrix which is fixed to the fibre tip. Excitation of the dye takes place at 533 nm and the emission in correspondence of the acid (580 nm) and basic (640 nm) bands are separately detected. The use of this ratiometric technique obviates worrying about source fluctuations, which have the same effects on the two detected signals. The pH sensor developed was first characterised in the laboratory, where it showed fast response time (of the order of tens of seconds) and an accuracy of 0.05 pH units, well below the limit of detection necessary for this clinical application (0.1 pH units). The pH sensor was also tested in vivo on rats, by placing the pH sensor in the brain of a Spraque-Dawley rat at a depth of approximately 5 mm30. 

Like many organizations today, the USP has a mission statement and this was stated in the 27th edition the objective of a pharmacopoeia is to provide and disseminate authoritative standards for medicines, other healthcare technologies and related practices to maintain and improve public health, and to provide information for practitioners and patients. In addition, the compendial activities of the USP are also designed to support the availability of safe and good quality medicines for consumers everywhere. In parenthesis, the term quality is not defined here because it is intuitively understood by everyone. One working definition holds that a quality item is one suitable for a stated purpose, but this is somewhat unsatisfactory and a better definition is required. 

Task Force on Principles for Economic Analysis of Health Care Technology. Economic analysis of healthcare technology A report on principles. Ann Intern Med 1995 122 61-70. 

The first of these two was acclaimed in a press release from the American Chemical Society and as One of Nine Top Healthcare Technologies to Watch in the Healthcare Technology journal. 

FIGURE 24.4 This is an example of an interpreted 12 lead EGG. A 2.5 sec recording is shown for each of the 12 leads. The bottom trace is a continuous 10 sec rhythm strip of lead II. Patient information is given in the top area, below which is printed the computerized interpretive statements. (Diagram is courtesy of GE Healthcare Technologies, Waukesha, WI.)... 

FIGURE 24.5 This is a block diagram of microprocessor-based EGG system. (Diagram is courtesy of GE Healthcare Technologies, Waukesha, WI.)... 

The decision to implant a permanent pacemaker usually is based on the major goals of symptom relief (at rest and with physical activity), restoration of functional capacity and quality of life, and reduced mortality. As with other healthcare technologies, the appropriate use of pacing is the intent of indications guidelines published by professional societies in cardiology. (The most recent version of guidelines for the United States can be found on the website of the Heart Rhythm Society.)... 

Management and Assessment of Healthcare Technology Yadin David and... 

ECRI. Healthcare Technology Assessment Curriculum. Philadelphia, August 1992. 

ECRI. Regional Healthcare Technology Planning and Management Program. Plymouth, PA, 1990. 

Lodge D.A. 1991. Productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness in the management of healthcare technology An incentive pay proposal. /. Clin. Eng. 16 29. 

There is a continually growing body of standards that aifect healthcare facilities, and hence clinical engineering. The practitioner of healthcare technology must constantly search out, evaluate, and apply appropriate standards. The means to reconcile the conflicts of technology, cost considerations, the different jurisdictions involved, and the implementation of the various standards is not necessarily apparent. One technique that addresses these concerns and has proven to yield a consistent practical approach is a structured framework of the various levels of standards. This hierarchy of standards is a conceptual model that the clinical engineer can use to evaluate and apply to the various requirements that exist in the procurement and use of healthcare technology. 

Kern, S, Jaron, D, (guest editors), Balancing Healthcare Technology, Economics, and Policy, IEEE EMB Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 1,2003. 

Engineering Education International Healthcare Technology Management... 

W.R. Bowen, Engineering innovation in healthcare technology, ethics and persons. Hum. Reprod. Genet Ethics 17, 204-221 (2011)... 

Drug delivery is a growing area of healthcare technology. Needleless injection techniques and inhalation are specific modes of delivery that are fueling this growth, driven largely by elevated requirements for patient comfort. As with blood handling applications, biocompatibility and sterilizability are key requirements. However, impact and wear resistance are also important. Some of the blends used in these applications include PC/PBT and PC/ABS. 

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