Director, Slotervaartziekenhuis
Why do I find technical innovation in health care important?
Technical innovation is important everywhere, but especially in health care. The volume growth, expectations, wishes and demands we have regarding our health and (therefore) also regarding our health care, are no longer to be completed by "more" and "better". We will have to do it "different"! And technological innovation is one of the few things that can offer that.
Give an example of such an innovation.
It is a simple and an oldie, but an extremely important innovation is the operate laparoscopically. That is minimally invasive surgery for an abdominal surgery, in which there need to be made only three small holes of two inches in the abdomen. Through one of the holes goes a camera, plus lamp, with which the tools that pass through the two other holes are held in the sight. This way, the operation is not only less risky (less blood loss, less risk of infection), but the patient is much better off (sooner recovered, fewer complications, less pain, much smaller scars) and the same goes for the care (less costs to complications, readmissions etc. and much shorter hospital stay).