On 31 January 2007 US National Science Foundation (NSF) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OCDE) co-organise a workshop titled “Social and Economic Factors Shaping the Future of the Internet”.

The workshop’s goal was to discuss strategic directions for the future of the Internet, from both a technological and a policy viewpoint. To this end, a group of experts, including economists, policy makers, social scientists and technologists, were brought together to consider a broad range of issues and questions relating to the future of the Internet, examples of which are listed under the following guiding themes:

• The openness of the Internet has been a clear factor in fostering competition and innovation, and is increasingly enabling users to develop, collaborate and distribute content and customise applications, driving a range of new social and economic opportunities.
• Security threats endanger network operation and a trusted online environment at a time when an increasing number and variety of communities and businesses critically rely on the Internet.
• Convergence between previously distinct networks and services toward the use of TCP/IP generates new demands on the Internet and places strains on existing regulatory models.

In the Workshop proceedings published by the OCDE there is a figure titled “Issues related to the Future of the Internet, based on complexity, urgency and importance” that perfectly describes the key points of the Internet:

As an example if you click the figure you will see two bubbles strongly related with Health: Empowerment Consumer (bubble 8 ) and Protect Personal Data (bubble 23). Those issues represent challenge to health care systems in the short term and medium complexity.

Google Health Advertising Blog has posted Doctors and the Web 2.0 talking about White Paper “Physicians and Web 2.0″ done by Manhattan Research:

Manhattan Research is a healthcare market research and services firm, laying the foundation for strategic planning for global pharmaceutical, biotech, device and diagnostic, and life sciences companies.

Manhattan Research guides clients in understanding market forces, trends, and impacts of physician and consumer use of information technology, including next generation digital media such as social networking, blogs, podcasts, and Web 2.0.

I refuse to speculate on the commercial propose of both sources. I just notice that the results contrast with what we have found in Catalonia (Spain). Our surveys to physicians, nurses, pharmacist, Internet users and also a 1300 web content analysis show Health and the Internet is still Web 1.0.

I suppose that Catalonia Health System, as well as many systems in Europe, are less market oriented than American Health System. That fact could influence on a slower adoption of the Web 2.0 by physicians because on whether they do not appropriate all the benefits of those technologies or they do not have many incentives to innovate using those technologies.

I have been studying some issues related with Innovation and with Telemedicine (if you follow the links you can see some references about them). In my case the key issue of both items is Information and Communication Technologies. To tackle the complex of these three concepts (Innovation, Telemedicine and ICT) I am following the Conceptual Model proposed by Greenhalgh T, Robert G, Macfarlane F, Bate P, Kyriakidou O (2004) Diffusion of innovations in service organizations: systematic review and recommendations. Milbank Q 82(4):581–629

Abstract

This article summarizes an extensive literature review addressing the question, How can we spread and sustain innovations in health service delivery and organization? It considers both content (defining and measuring the diffusion of innovation in organizations) and process (reviewing the literature in a systematic and reproducible way). This article discusses (1) a parsimonious and evidence-based model for considering the diffusion of innovations in health service organizations, (2) clear knowledge gaps where further research should be focused, and (3) a robust and transferable methodology for systematically reviewing health service policy and management. Both the model and the method should be tested more widely in a range of contexts.

In this article there is a very interesting figure (Figure 3. Conceptual Model for Considering the Determinants of Diffusion, Dissemination, and Implementation of Innovations in Health Service Delivery and Organization, Based on a Systematic Review of Empirical Research Studies) that shows the unifying conceptual model that they derived from their synthesis of theoretical and empirical findings

This conceptual model helps me to understand the relationship among Innovation, Telemedicine and ICT.