Open AccessPolicies toward medical technology: the case of electronic fetal monitoring.
Author(s) -
H. David Banta,
Stephen B. Thacker
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.69.9.931
Subject(s) - legislation , electronic fetal monitoring , food and drug administration , medicine , public health , health care , scientific evidence , health technology , medical emergency , family medicine , business , public relations , political science , nursing , law , heart rate , philosophy , epistemology , blood pressure , fetal heart rate , radiology
Electronic fetal monitoring (EFM) is an example of a medical technology that has been widely accepted since its introduction in the mid-1960s. However, review of the literature does not provide convincing evidence of EFM efficacy, and four recent, controlled, clinical trails show little if any benefit in terms of preventing death or long-term disability of the baby. Public and private policies have largely acted to encourage use of EFM, and none have acted to slow or prevent its spread. This need for mechanisms to assure the timely evaluation of new medical technologies before they are accepted as a medical practice has led to a new medical devices program in the Food and Drug Administration, consensus development groups at the National Institutes of Health, and congressional legislation to establish a new National Center for Health Care Technology.