From “Made in China” to “Created in China”

Abstract

Health problems are a major concern for rural Chinese people. One of the causes is shortages of medical resources, such as medical equipment and skilled medical staff. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is usually seen as a useful tool, by which medical resources in urban areas can be accessed for rural areas. Design and development of ICT-enabled Medical device and system for Rural China (DIMRC) is therefore considered to be a key approach of the Chinese central government in the development of rural healthcare. In practice, however, the gap between ideal ICT-enabled medical devices and systems and what is currently available in rural markets is still huge. Both the quantity and quality of existing ICT-enabled medical applications fall short of meeting the requirements of patients and doctors. To bridge this gap, the Chinese government has been encouraging local Chinese Research and Development (R&D) teams (from local companies and universities) to design and develop ICT-enabled medical devices and systems with appropriate innovations, suitable specifically for China. This is a part of China’s recent product development strategy, dubbed “Created in China”. This strategy encourages the local development of products in China by national brands, and increasingly replaces the “Made in China” strategy. There are several steps to be taken to reduce the gap between the ideal ICT-enabled medical devices and systems and those currently available in the rural markets. This PhD study focuses on one aspect: exploring what design competences of Chinese R&D teams should be improved and how to improve them. Three methods are used in this study: literature analysis, practice-based research, and interviews. The results of this thesis have revealed three issues that demand attention if the design competences of Chinese R&D teams are to be augmented: (1) R&D teams should have a deep understanding of China’s culture with reference to DIMRC; (2) the teams should have more knowledge about identification of design factors for DIMRC; and (3) the teams should have more knowledge to apply existing design methodologies to DIMRC. The results of this thesis were utilised to develop a new framework for DIMRC. In addition, an education module for integration into Chinese biomedical engineering education has been created. Finally both results were evaluated by one Chinese biomedical engineering professor and one senior biomedical engineer from a Chinese medical device company.