Evaluation of Technologies
New medical technologies have the potential to dramatically improve healthcare delivery. However, for many technologies, there is very limited evidence demonstrating that these technologies improve the quality, safety or efficiency of healthcare. The reasons for this are multi-faceted, including: a lack of primary research; using proxy outcome measures rather than more clinically important outcome measures; poorly theorised interventions and studies; over-estimating likely effect sizes; methodological limitations, particularly the failure to use cluster designs and randomised controlled trials; and poor definition and measurement of outcomes. Other factors that limit the applicability of evaluations include very short timeframes to study likely health gains and a failure to involve end-users at a sufficiently early stage in the design and deployment process. A key objective of the Health Technologies Programme will therefore be to establish a rigorous programme of health technology evaluation. This will be combined with evaluation of the human factors during product development and how social and technical factors combine to subsequently influence how innovations diffuse, become embedded within healthcare practice and organisations and, eventually, are successfully adopted.
This programme of evaluative research will include both primary research (observational and interventional); and systematic reviews and evidence synthesis.
Health Technologies Evaluation Screen Capture (larger version)
For further information, please contact Azeem Majeed at a.majeed@imperial.ac.uk
