Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Concerns that new applications of BAN may require major changes in roles and responsibilities of actors in the
health-care chain. In case this may lead to more complexity in the health-care system, this will reduce chances of
adoption by medical professionals.
Concerns about lack of experience and expertise in handling and decision making based on large amount of raw data.
Concerns about lack of clear protocols describing the roles and responsibilities of health-care professionals and other
external parties involved in the services. Legal and liability problems arising due to misinterpretation is another
concern of the medical professionals linked to the previous.
For hospitals, a major concern is related to processing data and storing information generated by BAN devices. Since
hospital databases across the country have no definitive/common structure of information storage and processing,
that may lead to practical problems.
Patient-
oriented
organizations
Envisioned
role
Envision a role to stimulate the use of proven application. As representative of users also a supportive role in the
debate on ethical issues to prevent unwanted consequences for the users. Also a bridging role between users
(patients) and industry to incorporate user preferences and values.
Main
concerns
Concerns about user-friendliness of BAN devices being developed. Related to this is the lack of knowledge of the
users to use and operate devices.
Concern about the mismatch between demand and supply in the medical devices sector. The development of medical
technologies is mainly driven by technology push strategies from the view of government and more interaction with
the users is required to enable the societal embedding of medical devices like BAN. There is need to articulate the
concerns of society and if necessary to implement new regulations to deal with the concerns about ethical aspects
that may arise to hamper societal embedding of BAN technologies (cf. privacy concerns). Although it is not directly
mentioned, patient organizations are concerned about possible future strategies of health-care insurance companies
to introduce new business models on the basis of the data that can be generated by BAN technologies.
Health-care
insurance
companies
Envisioned
role
Envision a role to stimulate efficiency in health care and recognize the fact that this is only possible through
cooperation between the triangle of health-care professionals, health-care insurance companies, and the patients or
representative patient organizations. Envision a limited role to stimulate pilot and experimental projects to prove
effectiveness of BAN applications. Large investments in innovation would put pressure on the costs of insurance
companies. Owing to regulatory issues and the competition in the Dutch health-care insurance system on the basis of
price of insurance policies, it is not simple to increase prices of health-care insurance policies.
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