InHealth awards Southern California, Northwestern and Stanford Universities $1.4M as research grants

Teams at USC, Northwestern and Stanford to study the role of clinicians in medical technology innovation; value of medical devices in treating diabetes and chronic wounds

The Institute for Health Technology Studies (InHealth) has awarded three new research grants totaling more than $1.4 million to investigators at the University of Southern California, Northwestern University, and Stanford University. The funding will support three separate studies that will examine the social and economic impact of therapeutic medical devices, as well as the device innovation process.

The grants support InHealth's research mission to develop objective data and add perspective to understanding the impact of medical technologies on patients, healthcare professionals, and the healthcare sector at large. Researchers will examine how medical technologies such as continuous glucose monitors and insulin pumps affect diabetic patients' quality of life and productivity; how to measure the effectiveness of medical technologies used to treat chronic wounds; and the roles of clinicians in the innovation process for medical technologies.

According to Martyn Howgill, executive director of InHealth, research into the socioeconomic impact of medical technology sheds light on the future of medical innovation and is invaluable in an era of healthcare reform.

"Examining the innovation process from beginning to end-from the roles of clinicians in developing new products to the technology's long-term effects-gives physicians and policymakers the knowledge and evidence they need to make the best-informed decisions for patients and the public," he says. "It also feeds information back into the innovation process, allowing for the development of even more effective medical technology."