In collaboration with the Heart Institute (InCOR) at the University of São Paulo (USP), the International Federation of Medical and Biological Engineering-Health Technology Assessment (IFMBE-HTA) Division held its inaugural International Workshop on Medical Device Assessment between December 9 to 11, 2019 in São Paulo, Brazil. A total of 126 participants were in attendance, including 55 in person. In addition, 71 remote participants were from other Latin American countries, such as Colombia and Mexico.
On Day 1 and 2, 14 presentations that addressed a range of themes were given. They are follows: HTA Networks; Medical Device Initiatives in the Americas; Medical Devices Evaluation Framework in Brazil, Europe, and Canada; Specific HTA Guidelines on Medical Devices; Post-Market Surveillance; Economic Evaluation; Nomenclatures; Medical Device HTAs in the Primary Care; and Reports on Medical Device HTAs. Presentations were given by local institution representatives, such as Evelinda Trindade (InCOR); Fotini Toscas (Ministry of Health); Saide Calil (UNICAMP); Murilo Contó (IFMBE, Brazil); José Alberto (UNIFEI) and Flavio Garcia (UFSC-IEB); as well as international speakers: Alexandre Lemgruber (PAHO-WHO); Julie Polisena (IFMBE, Canada) and Nicolas Pallikarakis (IFMBE, Greece).
On the third day, a guided tour was held at the Radiology Institute of Hospital das Clínicas of USP. This tour enabled participants to obtain a more intimate view of the complex health technologies and procedures involved in radiotherapy treatments for cancer.
According to feedback from participants, our first IFMBE-HTA Division Workshop on Medical Device Assessment held in Brazil was a unique opportunity to share information and raise awareness that, for numerous domains beyond clinical and cost-effectiveness, a closer examination is necessary for medical devices. Furthermore, round table discussions served as a forum to provide important guidance on the opportunities to develop methodologies and introduce new policies to enhance the assessment of and integrate processes for medical devices across health care systems.
