Copy the page URI to the clipboard
Kale, Dinar; Nabar, Janak; Garda, Laila and Tol, Varsha
(2023).
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/2157930X.2023.2215099
Abstract
The potential of inclusive medical technological innovations to create access to affordable and appropriate products and services for local healthcare systems in developing countries has emerged as a critical area of academic and policy debates. This research contributes to these debates by studying the key factors, actors and their interactions influencing the development and adoption of three innovative diagnostic devices to resolve the healthcare needs of the local population in the Indian healthcare systems. It highlights the critical role of the state in influencing the development and adoption of inclusive MedTech innovations in resource-constraint settings. It further reveals that the availability of finance facilitated the early-stage development of innovations. At the same time, collaborative arrangements with a diverse set of stakeholders contributed to late-stage development and adoption of innovations in the local healthcare systems. This research also expands on the conceptualization of inclusivity in the MedTech sector by providing a holistic interpretation of affordability as reducing healthcare costs over a longer period through access to early diagnostics rather than the purchase cost of a product. These research findings have significant implications for innovation and healthcare policies that can help to resolve the challenges of accessible healthcare in developing countries.