ECRI Institute Releases Free Top 10 Technology Watch List for the Hospital C-Suite

Critical overviews on emerging technologies can help hospital leaders improve capital planning efforts in 2014

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., Jan. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Each year, hospital leaders are bombarded with new technologies whose makers claim to improve outcomes and control costs. And with that comes mounting pressure from clinicians, vendors, and patients to adopt technologies or infrastructure changes that could profoundly impact the way healthcare providers deliver care and spend money.

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Given that, how can hospital leaders make the right decisions when there is so much technology and a weak reimbursement climate? The short answer is "evidence and informed judgment."

ECRI Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to researching the best approaches to patient care, announces the release of its 2014 Top 10 Hospital C-Suite Watch List, an evidence-based, straight-talk reference guide on upcoming noteworthy health technologies or health systems issues. It is available as a no-cost public service.

"This is not a list of 'must-haves,' but rather a 'must think carefully about' list," states Diane C. Robertson, director, health technology assessment information service, ECRI Institute. "We don't profess to have all the answers, but the unbiased evidence that we present about these 10 technologies and infrastructure issues will get healthcare leaders off to a steady start on their often rocky journey of acquiring new technologies or making system-wide changes in 2014 and beyond."
 

Each ofthe 10 summaries in this year's list feature key recommendations designed to help leaders decide if they should adopt a specific technology or invest in new infrastructure early, later, or not at all, and the implications for doing so.

Technologies and infrastructure issues on this year's list include:

• Computer-assisted sedation systems
• Catheter-based renal denervation for treatment-resistant hypertension
• Emergency departments designed just for elderly patients
• Copper surfaces in ICUs for preventing hospital-acquired infections
• Wearable powered exoskeleton rehabilitation for individuals with paraplegia
• Magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound for cancer pain
• NanoKnife® system to treat cancer
• Real-time MRI adaptive radiation therapy
• Intelligent pills to improve medication adherence and prevent readmissions
• Big data

"With this Watch List, healthcare leaders can learn more about potential game changers and use it as guidance when devising strategic growth plans for their facilities," Robert Maliff, director of applied solutions, ECRI Institute.

This year's Watch List draws upon ECRI Institute's more than 45 years of experience evaluating the safety, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of health technologies. It reflects the unbiased, independent judgment of the Institute's multidisciplinary staff of clinical and technical researchers, engineers, risk management specialists, and healthcare planners and consultants.

ECRI Institute's 2014 Top 10 Hospital C-Suite Watch List is available for download at www.ecri.org/2014watchlist (registration required). For additional information about the Watch List or ECRI Institute's patient safety and technology support services, contact ECRI Institute by telephone at (610) 825-6000, ext. 5655; by e-mail at [email protected], or by mail at 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462-1298, USA.

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About ECRI Institute
ECRI Institute, a nonprofit organization, dedicates itself to bringing the discipline of applied scientific research to healthcare to discover which medical procedures, devices, drugs, and processes are best to enable improved patient care. As pioneers in this science for 45 years, ECRI Institute marries experience and independence with the objectivity of evidence-based research. Strict conflict-of-interest guidelines ensure objectivity. ECRI Institute is designated an Evidence-based Practice Center by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. ECRI Institute PSO is listed as a federally certified Patient Safety Organization by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Find ECRI Institute on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ECRIInstitute) and on Twitter (www.twitter.com/ECRI_Institute). For more information, visit www.ecri.org.

SOURCE ECRI Institute