Dutch company Hospitainer as an inspiring example.

Dr. Ana Laura Santos cites Hospitainer which builds hospitals in containers, as an inspiring example because of their inclusive way of working.

“The reason why I give hospitainer as an example is because of the business model which includes not only the provision of a product but also of a service that supports the operations of organizations. Medical device companies could learn from that example since providing safe healthcare requires so much more than transferring products. It’s important to consider, in business models, the whole eco-system of technologies that is needed to provide complete healthcare.”

If a disaster occurs somewhere in the world, organizations rapidly build temporary hospitals. But the medical equipment that doctors should use there is often not suitable for such a cobbled-together Hospital. Just dropping a device from a Dutch hospital in a disaster area causes problems. The equipment is not designed for the dusty, humid environment. In addition, the equipment is not always robust enough to transport, especially if the roads are bumpy, or torn by an earthquake.

The equipment would have to be redesigned, Ana Laura Santos, who recently obtained her PhD at TU Delft, suggests. These new designs must also be much simpler because often no local doctors are available, but only nurses. The development also pays off for us, she thinks, because simpler devices can also be used here.

Listen to the interview by BNR (Dutch) >>