A new report published by the Canadian Health Policy Institute has found that Canada's average per capita expenditure on medical devices between 2006 and 2011 was $168 far below the average per capita expenditure of its southern neighbor that stood at $318.

Still, over five years, Canada's per capita expenditure on medical devices grew nearly at the same rate as that of the U.S. It jumped 34.3 percent from $136 in 2006 to $183 five years later.

But the U.S. wasn't the country that took the top spot in terms of the five-year increase in per capital medical device expenditure. Switzerland saw its per capita expenses shoot up 55.5 percent in the same period to $445 in 2011 from $286 in 2006.

The purpose of the report, which compared Canada's data with 65 other countries, was to determine whether expenses on medical devices in Canada is to be blamed for fast-growing healthcare costs overall. The author...

A while back we told you about one medtech outsourcing partner that's trying to become a more sustainable supplier to the industry. Mack Medical's Julie Horst said sustainable manufacturing is becoming as important as ISO certifications these days. 

If you're interested in taking steps to make your manufacturing operations more sustainable, check out these resources:

Sustainable Manufacturing Initiative’s Sustainable Business Clearinghouse
Search more than 850 federal, state, and nongovernmental resources aimed at helping U.S. businesses increase competitiveness and profitability in sustainable ways through this Web portal maintained by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s (DOC) International Trade Administration. 

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In a session at the 2013 American Telemedicine Association's International Meeting & Trade Show, Henley also cited five forces impacting healthcare today.  

The plenary session on Monday at the American Telemedicine Association's International Meeting & Trade Show was presented by Jeffrey Henley, chairman of Oracle Corp.

Oracle is engaged in healthcare by enabling patient-centered technology for health engagement, and the company has invested heavily in developing software and IT infrastructure for disease management and health management. Oracle is also engaged with accountable care organizations, connected health, and public/private insurance exchanges.

Henley cited five forces affecting healthcare today:

1. Clinical innovation
    
2. Regulatory decisions
    
3. Competitive threats...

MD+DI editorial advisory board member Bill Betten shares his thoughts on the 2013 International Meeting & Trade Show of the American Telehealth Association.

As noted in my day one notes, the American Telemedicine Association show is certainly growing in both conference and exhibitor attendance. The conference proceedings included many demonstrations and discussions of telemedicine in use.

The initial stages of the technology tend to be focused on providing care to remote locations or underserved areas, much as how radiology evolved into the teleradiology we know today.

There has not yet been a transformative impact on new methods of delivering care. I do believe that this will occur in the not-too-distant future, particularly with regard to monitoring of chronic health conditions.

There was a large emphasis on the exhibition...