Getting Started with an Open-Source Medical Device Project: Systematic Needs Identification Techniques for Bottom-Up Strategies

Abstract

Successful medical technologies rely on adequately detecting unsolved or partially solved socially relevant medical challenges or needs. Identifying such needs in a precise way and specifying the medical device requirements constitute the planning stage, which is fundamental for the success of any engineering products, processes or systems under development. In our continuously changing and extremely diverse societies, a shift of trend can be appreciated in several design areas, which now benefit from the collaborative efforts of co-creators and from bottom-up innovation strategies. Indeed, traditional in-house innovation lacks dynamism, creative power and attention to end users’ needs, as compared with more recent open-innovation environments. In the medical industry, the emergent area of open-source medical devices, developed in collaboration and shared with colleagues, medical professionals, patients and patient associations and citizens, can benefit from the employment of systematic needs identification techniques oriented to bottom-up strategies. In the chapter, we present some options for a methodical identification of needs, as a support to getting started with open-source medical device projects. We illustrate such techniques by means of selected cases of studies, in which the potentials of an intimate collaboration with medical professionals, patients and patients associations are put forward. Besides, the relevance of bridging the gap between academia, industry, healthcare professionals and patients is discussed.