Iffy Climate Deters Medical Technology Innovation

Abstract

DESPITE proven successes, the future of innovative technology in medicine is in an uncertain state. "The trend today is not all positive with regard to introducing new technology into society in the medical context," says J. Casey McGlynn, Palo Alto, Calif, a provider of venture capital. "To [develop useful technologies] we need a new partnership between government and industry, and I don't think we're getting it," says S. Morry Blumenfeld, PhD, of General Electric Medical Systems, Milwaukee, Wis. Both men spoke at a symposium devoted to issues and concerns regarding the development of new medical technologies held by the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. The meeting honored the late Howard A. Paul, DVM, who advanced medical technology himself when he developed a robotic device that improved the accuracy of such orthopedic procedures as hip replacement (<i>JAMA</i>. 1992;267:613-614). The principal message of both speakers is that advances in medical technologies are potentially