SMTK18001U Rethinking Healthcare - Innovation as a powerful driver

Volume 2017/2018
Education

MSc in Medicine and Technology (Biomedical Engineering) - electives

Content

In order to solve health challenges innovation is high on the agenda of the society. The innovation concept is ambiguous and debated in many different contexts. This course will focus on theoretical and practical aspects of innovation in relation to health and healthcare. The key questions are: Which challenges is health and the healthcare system facing? How can health innovation processes be valuable when addressing these challenges? The focus will be on innovation processes (within products, services and health systems). Different theoretical approaches to innovation and innovation processes will be introduced and the students will translate theory into practice during iterative exercises that covers products/services/systems innovation. Furthermore, the students will complement the innovation processes with methods and theories from their own educational background. The course is open for all students across educations with healthcare aspects. Interdisciplinary teamwork will be a central theme. Healthcare stakeholders from the public service, the private sector and/or the universities will present healthcare challenges and through exercises and interdisciplinary teamwork, the students will propose solutions to these challenges. This will include creations of health innovation prototypes accompanied by reflections, analyses and discussions of the innovation processes.  

Learning Outcome

The overall objective of the course is to introduce the students to different innovation processes with relation to health. The focus will be on product innovation, service innovation and system innovation. The students will learn through practice and they will solve various – but specific innovation challenges raised by external healthcare stakeholders and apply their knowledge into actual action that creates value for others. In addition, the students will learn about interdisciplinary teamwork.

Knowledge

  • The innovation concept
  • Different process models and approaches to innovation in relation to health and healthcare
  • Different types of innovation processes (products, services and systems) in relation to health and healthcare
  • Principles for interdisciplinary teamwork
     

Skills

  • Evaluate and discuss the innovation concept in relation to health and healthcare
  • Apply and analyze different process models and approaches to innovation in relation to health and healthcare
  • Design different types of innovation processes (products, services and systems) in relation to health and healthcare
  • Generate ideas for and create different innovation prototypes in relation to health and healthcare
  • Evaluate and critically reflect on concepts, processes and models used in health innovation
  • Define own educational skills and competences that are be valuable in a health innovation process
  • Organize interdisciplinary teamwork
     

Competences

  • Ability to evaluate when and how to use given resources and knowledge in an innovation process in relation to health and healthcare
  • Ability to cooperate in a multidisciplinary team to design and conduct health innovation process
  • Ability to integrate own professional skills and competences in a multidisciplinary context
  • Ability to communicate with peers from different disciplines
The course is open to master's students across educations with health care aspects and participants with a specific interest in health care and innovation.
Master's students and professionals with a broad range of educational backgrounds are welcome such as biomedical engineering, engineering, anthropology, social sciences, philosophy, public health, medicine, human biology, and the natural sciences.

Note that this course involves a high degree of group work that requires commitment and engagement of the students
Lectures and case based group exercises. Invited external experts will present challenges and problems in relation to health and healthcare. The students will apply different models and theoretical approaches to solve these challenges.
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Exam
  • 1
  • Lectures
  • 24
  • Preparation
  • 72
  • Project work
  • 40
  • Total
  • 137
Continuous feedback during the course of the semester
Credit
5 ECTS
Type of assessment
Oral examination, 45 minutes
Group presentation based on three assignments (handed in during the course)
Aid
All aids allowed
Marking scale
passed/not passed
Censorship form
No external censorship
One or more internal assessors
Criteria for exam assesment

Criteria for exam assessment:

Knowledge

  • The innovation concept
  • Different process models and approaches to innovation in relation to health and healthcare
  • Different types of innovation processes (production, service and system) in relation to health and healthcare
  • Principles for interdisciplinary teamwork
     

Skills

  • Evaluate and discuss the innovation concept in relation to health and healthcare
  • Apply and analyze different process models and approaches to innovation in relation to health and healthcare
  • Design different types of innovation processes (production, service and system) in relation to health and healthcare
  • Generate ideas for and create different innovation prototypes in relation to health and healthcare
  • Evaluate and critically reflect on concepts, processes and models used in health innovation
  • Define own educational skills and competences that are be valuable in a health innovation process
  • Organize interdisciplinary teamwork