Technical Medical Centre, University of Twente, P.O. Box 217, 7500 AE, Enschede, The Netherlands.
Department of Health Technology and Services Research, University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands.
BMC Med Educ. 2023 Mar 23;23(1):181. doi: 10.1186/s12909-023-04137-z.
The rapid introduction of technical innovations in healthcare requires that professionals are adequately prepared for correct clinical use of medical technology. In response to the technological transformation of healthcare, a new type of professional, the Technical Physician (TP), was created and is trained to improve individual patient care using technology tailored to the needs of individual patients. This study investigates the TPs' impact on patient care in terms of innovation, effectiveness, efficiency, and patient safety.
Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 30 TPs and 17 medical specialists (MSs) working in academic or teaching hospitals in the Netherlands. The pre-structured and open-ended interview questions focused on: 1) the perceived impact on innovation, effectiveness, efficiency, and safety, and 2) opportunities and challenges in daily work.
TPs and MSs unanimously experienced that TPs contributed to innovation. A majority indicated that effectiveness (TP 57%; MS 71%) and efficiency (TP 67%; MS 65%) of clinical practice had increased. For safety, 87% of TPs but only 47% of MSs reported an increase. The main explanation given for TPs positive impact was combining medical and technical knowledge. Mainly organizational barriers were mentioned as a potential cause for a less visible contribution of TPs.
TPs and MSs unanimously agreed that TPs contributed to innovating patient care through their integrative medical and technical competencies. Most TPs and MSs also reported increased effectiveness, efficiency, and safety of patient care due to the TPs' work. TPs and MSs expected that the TPs' impact on direct and indirect patient care will be enhanced once organizational barriers are removed.
医疗保健领域技术创新的快速引入要求专业人员为正确临床使用医疗技术做好充分准备。为了应对医疗保健的技术转型，创造了一种新型专业人员——技术医师（TP），并对其进行培训，以利用针对个体患者需求定制的技术来改善个体患者的护理。本研究调查了 TPs 在创新、效果、效率和患者安全方面对患者护理的影响。
在荷兰的学术或教学医院，对 30 名 TP 和 17 名医学专家（MS）进行了半结构化深入访谈。预结构化和开放式访谈问题集中在：1）对创新、效果、效率和安全性的感知影响，2）日常工作中的机会和挑战。
TP 和 MS 一致认为 TPs 有助于创新。大多数人表示临床实践的效果（TP 为 57%；MS 为 71%）和效率（TP 为 67%；MS 为 65%）都有所提高。对于安全性，87%的 TP 报告有所增加，而只有 47%的 MS 报告有所增加。TP 产生积极影响的主要解释是结合了医学和技术知识。主要提到了组织障碍是 TPs 贡献不太明显的潜在原因。
TP 和 MS 一致认为，TP 通过其综合的医学和技术能力为创新患者护理做出了贡献。大多数 TP 和 MS 还报告说，由于 TPs 的工作，患者护理的效果、效率和安全性有所提高。TP 和 MS 预计，一旦消除组织障碍，TP 对直接和间接患者护理的影响将得到增强。
