MedTechNL is fully committed to healthcare transition and economic viability
The National Growth Fund, which plans to invest 20 billion euros over a period of five years, is aimed at stimulating the Dutch economy and accomplishing structural growth. Under the banner of ‘MedTechNL’—a national consortium of over 200 partners—an ambitious national plan for medical technology has been developed.
MedTechNL consists of companies, university medical centres, hospitals, care centres, technical universities, universities of applied sciences, TNO, health funds and various policymakers that are collaborating on a Growth Fund proposal. MedTechNL aims to use medical technological innovations to improve the quality and affordability of health and care and solve labour shortages, while prioritising demand, excellence and collective international competitiveness.
Turning the tide
With a leading ecosystem for medical technology, MedTechNL wants to keep people out of hospital and lower the costs of healthcare. As a consortium, we want to contribute to a real change in healthcare. We are reaching the limits of our current healthcare system and there is a risk that costs and labour shortages will no longer be manageable in the future. But, with the use of medical technology, we can turn the tide. The activities within the Growth Fund application are centred on three pillars:
- prevention and early diagnosis;
- lowering the costs of hospital treatments;
- monitoring and treating patients in their own homes.
These pillars have their basis in the idea that the future of healthcare and care lies primarily outside of hospitals, and that people must be the central focus.
Why MedTechNL?
- To support the transitions, medical technology must be developed and implemented from the principle of value-based healthcare.
- The production and export of medical technology is a major economic opportunity.
- The Netherlands is well-positioned to take advantage of these economic opportunities.
- A strong MedTech ecosystem is crucial for successful MedTech innovation.
With this Growth Fund application, MedTechNL wants to resolve the bottlenecks in the Dutch MedTech ecosystem to become the leading MedTech ecosystem in Europe.
Economic and social advantages
The MedTechNL programme offers both economic and social advantages. The accessible, advanced infrastructure for medical technology will make it easier for Dutch companies to launch their products in foreign markets. Similarly, foreign companies can come to the Netherlands to utilise our innovative infrastructure. The social benefits include a population that remains healthier for longer, labour shortages in healthcare being resolved and the increase in healthcare costs being kept to a minimum.
Drafting the programme
What began as an idea to join forces for the development of medical technology, resulted in the drafting of a programme, the Breed Gedragen Programma (BGP), within the Knowledge and Innovation Agenda (KIA) Key Technologies. This BGP for medical technology was drafted by a large and diverse group of partners from the many branches of the MedTech ecosystem. This programme sets out a shared mission, vision and strategy for the development and implementation of medical technology in the Netherlands, in line with the ambitions of the KIA Health and Care. It also defines which key technologies play an important role. This BGP marked the start of MedTechNL as a movement that will continue to develop in the coming years. MedTechNL’s Growth Fund application has been submitted to the Growth Fund Committee. The submitting ministry is the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy. The programme is also explicitly supported by the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sport.
Partners in the MedTechNL consortium
The Growth Fund application is submitted and implemented by the partners in MedTechNL, a national consortium created for and by all parties in the MedTech ecosystem. A wide range of parties from the MedTech ecosystem are represented within this proposal. There are 271 in total: 38 large companies, 129 SMEs (48% of the total), 10 (technical) universities/applied research organisations, 11 universities of applied sciences/MBOs, 7 UMCs, 9 hospitals, 15 care parties, 13 health funds, 4 top sectors and 35 umbrella organisations, including patient associations, Zorgverzekeraars Nederland and regulatory organisations such as ZiN and NZa.
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