The field of healthcare intrepreneurship was last investigated through the lens of different social sciences, including economics, organization studies, marketing, and so on. However, despite the present chaotic academic environment, the research in many fields is incomplete and dispersed. With the increase in technological applications in the field of healthcare (Lee and Anema 2019, Anema, Preston, Platz, and Unnithan 2020), the literature in academia located at the intersection between the two fields of technology-driven entrepreneurship and healthcare demands a thorough analysis as well as further studies (Medina-Garrido Martinez-Fierro, Ruiz Navarro, and Martinez-Garrido (2007), Zhao, 2008, Wang, Pan, and Ray 2021). We base our definitions on well-established models (for an outline, see Bailetti, 2012, Ratinho, Harms & Walsh, 2015). We define technologically driven entrepreneurship within the healthcare industry as starting, developing, and growing businesses that create new products, technology, and services that create benefits for patients as well as others that are affected (e.g., hospitals, their personnel, employees, insurance companies, and others.). This could include developing software for launching medical equipment and developing new businesses that make use of technologies to deliver better healthcare to patients at a lower cost. There are specific characteristics of technologists who are entrepreneurs. First, potential patients of health providers, such as doctors or patients, could not be aware that standard procedures or processes for business might be conducted differently in a unique way (Tortorella, Saurin, Fogliatto, Rosa, Tonetto, and Magrabi 2020). It is vital to understand that the merits of the new approach must be confirmed, and references to other fields do not have much importance for healthcare intrepreneurship. A second factor is that cost-saving is not the only factor to consider when transforming traditional methods in favour of a modern approach. Innovation driven by technology can bring about new value that benefits those who are forced to accept that they cannot have a satisfying life. Another reason is that technology-driven business directly impacts the life quality of those it assists by reducing the frequency of prevalence, creating previously unattainable medical treatments, and making rehabilitation more efficient.
Healthcare Intrepreneurship Technology
Based on research conducted by Holt, Rutherford, and Clohessy (2007) and Ratten (2010) and (2011), the top qualities of an entrepreneur are creativity in the workplace, proactivity, and taking risks. In the following sections, each one of these traits is further examined using case studies from the world of healthcare intrepreneurship. Technology innovation is the process of creating, developing new, or introducing superior technologies to tackle issues or improve the efficiency of methods. For healthcare, advances in technology cover all types of products and services that are intended to improve the quality of medical services by lowering the costs of healthcare and improving the efficiency of healthcare intrepreneurship (Hardeman and Kahn 2020, Shen, Wang, & Yang 2020) for prevention, detection of treatment, recovery, and prevention for patients (Burns 2012). Most of the advancements occurring in health care are, to some extent, affected by the computing power and capabilities of IT equipment that help humans when needed (Lu, 2016). Examples of technological innovations within the healthcare field are electronic health records, electronic prescriptions, and the utilization of telemedicine. Electronic health records have undergone a major update recently to be more efficient, safe, reliable, and straightforward to access (Kim, Rubinstein, Nead, Wojcieszynski, Gabriel, and Warner 2019). The updated system allows for more comprehensive medical records to be stored to facilitate faster access, improved interactions between health professionals, and better results for patients. Additionally, it was updated using the most recent analytics to help healthcare intrepreneurship professionals better diagnose and monitor illnesses (Juhn and Liu, 2020). By using e-prescribing technology, doctors can send quickly and easily prescribed medications electronically to pharmacies to reduce time and remove the need for prescriptions that are printed out on paper (Aldughayfiq and Sampalli, 2021). This technology has evolved and is now incorporating advanced features such as the ability to identify interactions with medications as well as examine the medical histories of patients and generate reminders for refills. Telemedicine has been used for many years and has been continuously upgraded to offer more efficient and secure methods of providing healthcare intrepreneurship to people (Loeb, Rao, Ficke, Morris, Riley III, and Levin 2020). Recent advancements have led to the development of secure video conferencing services, along with the advancement of artificial intelligence to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of patients and the ability to safely store and share health information. The current academic research environment poses a host of challenges to researchers and scholars regarding the use of technological advances. First, there is concern about the privacy and security of the data taken, stored, or otherwise processed (Hathaliya and Tanwar, 2020). Medical professionals also resist automatizing conventional procedures in the medical field (Monllau, 2019). Today’s technologically complex medical technology requires an amalgamation of knowledge and expertise across various disciplines (Yu, Beam, & Kohane, 2018).
Technological Initiative
Technology proactivity can be described as an approach to identifying and fixing issues before they occur (Garcia-Morales, Ruiz-Moreno, and Llorens Montes.). For the healthcare intrepreneurship industry, proactivity with technology could aid in the use of technology to adapt to and respond to the demands of health specialists in the coming years. It is about acquiring information on the latest health trends, finding the potential dangers, and figuring out strategies to address these issues. Some examples of technological proactivity in the healthcare intrepreneurship field include predictive analytics, earlier detection of illnesses, and automation of healthcare intrepreneurship. The goal of proactive technology in healthcare intrepreneurship is to ensure the health of patients, identify medical concerns specific to individuals, and formulate predictions on an individual or social scale (Liao and Tsai, 2019). Within the realm of proactive medicine, it’s essential to put money into the entire process of treatment, prevention, and early detection of illnesses during a time when costly health resources aren’t necessarily rewarded. A proactive approach to medicine made of technology may be targeted at changes in human behaviour to change undesirable behaviour as well as support any adjustments. Patients who are not receiving sufficient care may end up harming their bodies and being frequently admitted to hospitals or even buried (Hixon, 2015). A few patients don’t have the drive and motivation to alter their habits. In these cases, technological solutions can be a good choice since they’re based on continuous feedback and individualization, advising at the right time. The measures that are taken, such as heart rate, levels of activity, and so on, are sent immediately to the doctor who is attending the appointment or continuously monitored by the software using technology. These measures can be used to anticipate the impact on health. Technology innovation can aid in the development of more sustainable healthcare intrepreneurship strategies by helping hospitals come up with new strategies to offer solutions that can stand against the tests of time, are financially viable, and benefit the ecological balance (Kyriakarakos and Dounis 2020). Implementing technology-based solutions for sustainable healthcare could result in improved outcomes for generations to come. Social tech entrepreneurship affects the foundations of collaboration with the market as well as the other resources from both sources. It’s most efficient for healthcare because of its close ties to solving health problems (Amini Arasti, Amini, and Bagheri, 2018). Risk-taking in technology is a method that could yield profits by reducing the risk to financial stability, which is linked to technological advancement as well as its application. Based on the research available on the subject, these major technological health risks are acknowledged. one of which is the risk of accident or death for patients who use the device or the technology. The business is responsible for the effectiveness of its devices and software due to their characteristics of design, production, or the possibility of use by healthcare intrepreneurship medical professionals or patients. There is a chance that the device will be unable to detect changes in the health status of the patient, which could lead to an alteration in the status of the patient in addition to potential legal charges. Furthermore, any medically important technological devices must be completely tested and debugged to limit the possibility of any further adjustments or calibrations (Sittig and Singh 2010). This is crucial information not only for the doctor as well as the patient but also for others involved in the business. In this case, for instance, the insurance company might give discounts to patients using technology. In the event of an error, an organization could face financial consequences if it is the result of the manipulation of information. Cyberattacks can also impact the protection of health data (Owens 2020). If scammers succeed and a company succeeds in its endeavour, it may face reputational, financial, and organizational risks. As an example, due to these crimes, the information of the users may be given to third-party companies, and the software used may change without notifying customers about it as well.
Value Creation for Healthcare Intrepreneurship
In this part, we will discuss the challenges and possibilities that are a part of the value-creation process at microlevels (i.e., patients, for example) as well as mesolevels (i.e., hospitals and patients), as well as meso (medical hospital staff and personnel), as well as the larger scales (industry). Innovation in the field of technology is described as starting, developing, and growing businesses that develop new products, technologies, and services that generate value for people (Bailetti et al., 2012, Ratinho et al., 2015.). Some of the largest tech firms, including Google, can provide benefits for health by aggregating parameters in time and forecasting changes in health at a microscale. While technology companies are making waves within this field, like Kinsa Health or CardioQVARK, they’re not in any way better than the big companies, which are operating in their specializations. Entrepreneurs in the field of technology are also able to evaluate the outcomes of the different types of populations, as well as cross-country differences and the analysis of micro-level characteristics across different groups. Thanks to algorithmic learning and machine learning, it is possible to predict the course of a person’s disease or identify a trend in the risk of getting sicker in the same population for 3 to 5 years. The value of healthcare intrepreneurship based on technology can be measured through the integration of services both horizontally at a local or regional level as well as vertically at the interregional level by engaging officials within the area. The absence of infrastructure for the integration and application of technology is a major obstacle to progress on a macro scale. Security and trust issues (Hathaliya and Co. 2020) and insufficient integration of technology into the work process (Knickerbocker and Co. 2018), along with the choice of technology to integrate, are the most important aspects. Products that stand-alone have been incorporated and tested to a great extent to prove useful for others. But there’s no particular accepted standard applied when designing technologies for health care demands. Some have even highlighted the specific risks at macro- and meso-levels. One of them is the need for a lengthy test and required certificates before release (Hamburg 2010.). The risk of failure or developing unfavourable solutions that will not prove to offer a superior experience over analogues or traditional ones in terms of the parameters they are based on is important. Furthermore, technological advances in health require significant expenditures as well as vast networks to promote the solutions, evaluate them, and then integrate the technology. Health markets are high-risk, even if they may bring in a significant profit. The third reason is that the disdain and suspicion of the market’s participants could hinder the acceptance of new technologies. Healthcare intrepreneurship professionals might be concerned about losing patients and the need for their patients to receive medical care. Patients could be anxious about the operation of devices that aren’t working correctly and prefer staying in touch with medical professionals rather than using software. Also, the management of a hospital may damage its image if it allows tests and employs untested approaches to technological issues.
Flood Causes Waves of Crisis
