What are health technologies?
The term health technologies (or health technologies), medical technologies- was first defined in the 1970s by the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) to refer to «medicines, devices, medical and surgical procedures used in medical care and the organisational systems by which health care is delivered".
During the last two decades of the 21st century, the use of the household internet use such as that of the intelligent mobile telephony, the smartphones. And from these tools, the innovation in digital health has been constant. The digital world has marked an evolutionary leap forward in the field of health technologies, It has allowed for exponential development.
This evolution has led to very significant changes in both the organisation of health services and teams, The same is true for patient care.
RememberMedical technologies are not only about medicines and equipment used by health professionals. Medical technologies also include clinical practice itself and the way it is organised.
Health Technologies in 2021: a MedTech Europe sector report
The European employers' organisation MedTech Europe publishes an annual report MedTech Europe's Facts and Figures. This study, which is publicly available on its website, offers some reliable and relevant statistical and economic data on digital health and health technologies. Moreover, it is a complex research that allows you to approach the health technology sector from different angles and variables (according to the product, the manufacturer, the consumer, the health technology professionals ....).
At Gabinete Técnico Farmacéutico M. Camps we have decided to share some of the most relevant data of the report with our readers.
Did you know that...
- There are more than 500,000 products based on health technologies. You can find them in hospitals, social services and in your own home.
- The European healthcare technology sector directly employs more than 760,000 people. In comparison, the European pharmaceutical industry employs some 795,000 people.
- Germany is the country with the highest number of people employed in the medical technology sector, while the number of medical technology employees per capita is highest in Ireland and in Switzerland.
- There are more than 33,000 medical technology companies in Europe. The largest number of them are also based in Germany, followed by Italy, the UK, France and Switzerland.
- The small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) account for around 95% from the technology industry, most of which employ fewer than 50 people.
- In the EU, an average of about 11% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is earmarked for health, The sector is clearly pioneering, fundamental and constantly growing.