CIO | Can Innovation Help Curb Medical Mistakes?

By Larry Stofko | Even with all the advances in patient care, medical error continues to take lives at 1,000 per day in the United States (Leapfrog – Spring 2017 Report). So what are we doing to reduce these numbers? The answer: Individuals and organizations like The Innovation Institute, who want to have a positive impact in health care, are developing and funding new technologies that are focused on reducing medical mistakes. Health care is an area where innovation is making a difference curbing medical mistakes to save patient lives. Here are some areas where progress is being made.

3D printing

Additive Manufacturing, or 3D printing, has been around since 1984. Today, technology advances are allowing health care to leverage 3D printing in many ways. 3D printing is used to develop shoes, textiles, jewelry, concept cars, robots and a variety of other industrial and consumer products. It is also becoming cost-effective and is finding its place more prominently in health care, and applications are abundant. Low-cost prosthetic parts, plastic implants, personalized casts, and printed biomaterials (ears, heart valves, bones, etc.) are some examples. 3D printing can help save lives. Last year, surgeons at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami used 3D printing to save a 4-year-old’s life, as shown on CNN. If traditional surgery preparation tools were employed, a small error or mistake during surgery could have cost the 4-year-old her life. More…