Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, Technology and Policy Program, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Despite its development and suitability to many specialties of medicine for the past forty years and the driving demands of an aging population, telemedicine has not made significant progress in deployment or commercialization. Why is this? Three case studies of health networks were used to identify the barriers to the widespread use of telemedicine in home healthcare and other applications of medicine. These barriers were further described and analyzed using the framework for disruptive technologies presented in Clayton Christensen' s The Innovator' s Dilemma. Although many studies assert that the slow adoption rate of telemedicine is explained by questions of efficacy and cost, this analysis proposes that the change in value networks posed by telemedicine technology is the greatest reason for its anemic implementation. Telemedicine changes the structure of the healthcare sector changing the organizational dynamics and values of the many players. The changes in structure are explored using the case studies and the successes and failures experienced by the health networks when implementing telemedicine across medical specialties. In order to harness this technology, recommendations are directed at organizations that need to evaluate new technologies differently and change their behavior with respect to competitors. Public policy needs to recognize the need for a greater thrust in long-term investments in telemedicine research, greater awareness of telemedicine in medical education and in taking the lead in developing standards, guidelines and protocols for telemedicine networks. Research also needs to be encouraged in newer clinical areas and existing standards and technologies in mature telemedicine application areas such as teleradiology and telepathology may be used in medical specialties where telemedicine is not yet a mainstream application. Moreover, the technology needs to become more 'human-centered' , to reduce technology barriers for both providers and patients amongst whom the elderly may be predominant. / by Shaheen Malik. / S.M.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:MIT/oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/16605 |
| Date | January 2003 |
| Creators | Malik, Shaheen, 1974- |
| Contributors | Joseph F. Coughlin., Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Technology and Policy Program., Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Technology and Policy Program. |
| Publisher | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Source Sets | M.I.T. Theses and Dissertation |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 91 leaves, 760001 bytes, 933852 bytes, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf |
| Rights | M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission., http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 |
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