Biomaterial Database

Unmet needs: relevance to medical technology innovation? 2014

Avril D McCarthy, and Lise Sproson, and Oliver Wells, and Wendy Tindale

a Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering .

This paper describes and discusses the role of unmet needs in the innovation of new medical technologies using the National Institute for Health Research Devices for Dignity (D4D) Healthcare Technology Co-operative as a case study. It defines an unmet need, providing a spectrum of classification and discusses the benefits and the challenges of identifying unmet need and its influence on the innovation process. The process by which D4D has captured and utilized unmet needs to drive technology innovation is discussed and examples given. It concludes by arguing that, despite the challenges, defining and reviewing unmet need is a fundamental factor in the success of medical technology innovation.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D004864	Equipment and Supplies	Expendable and nonexpendable equipment, supplies, apparatus, and instruments that are used in diagnostic, surgical, therapeutic, scientific, and experimental procedures.	Apparatus and Instruments,Devices,Medical Devices,Device, Medical,Devices, Medical,Equipment,Inventories,Medical Device,Supplies,Device,Instruments and Apparatus,Inventory,Supplies and Equipment
D006113	United Kingdom	Country in northwestern Europe including Great Britain and the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland, located between the North Sea and north Atlantic Ocean. The capital is London.	Great Britain,Isle of Man
D013673	Technology Assessment, Biomedical	Evaluation of biomedical technology in relation to cost, efficacy, utilization, etc., and its future impact on social, ethical, and legal systems.	Assessment, Biomedical Technology,Assessment, Technology,Biomedical Technology Assessment,Technology Assessment,Technology Assessment, Health,Assessment, Health Technology,Assessments, Biomedical Technology,Assessments, Health Technology,Assessments, Technology,Biomedical Technology Assessments,Health Technology Assessment,Health Technology Assessments,Technology Assessments,Technology Assessments, Biomedical,Technology Assessments, Health
D062069	Inventions	A novel composition, device, or process, independently conceived de novo or derived from a pre-existing model.	Technological Innovations,Innovation, Technological,Innovations, Technological,Invention,Technological Innovation
D020380	Needs Assessment	Systematic identification of a population's needs or the assessment of individuals to determine the proper level of services needed.	Assessment of Health Care Needs,Determination of Health Care Needs,Educational Needs Assessment,Assessment of Healthcare Needs,Determination of Healthcare Needs,Assessment, Educational Needs,Needs Assessment, Educational,Needs Assessment, Healthcare,Needs Assessments,Needs Assessments, Educational,Needs Assessments, Healthcare
D020811	Biomedical Technology	The application of technology to the solution of medical problems.	Health Care Technology,Health Technology,Biomedical Technologies,Technology, Biomedical,Technology, Health,Technology, Health Care