Special Issue on Point-Of-Care Technologies
By Nitish Thakor
The recent IEEE EMBS Special Topic Conference on Point-Of-Care Technologies, held January 16-18 in Bangalore, India, featured papers and presentations on this important topic, with respect to application in both developed and developing countries. We bring you an interview with Conference Chair Dr. Atam Dhawan, and four insightful articles from different perspectives by Keynote Speakers, addressing the impact of Point-Of-Care Technologies (POCT) on both the world as a whole and India in particular.
In our featured video, Atam Dhawan discusses areas where he foresees breakthroughs in POCT in the next decade, along with thoughts on where he would like to see more effort placed. Differences and similarities in healthcare needs in developed and developing countries are presented.
In his accompanying article, ‘Point-Of-Care Technologies: an Evolution in Personalized Healthcare” Atam Dhawan points out the broader impact of POCT on healthcare delivery throughout the world.
Clifford Dacso underlines the broader impact of POCT on the healthcare ecosystem, in “Point of Care Medical Technologies Must Blaze New Trails”.
Ritu Kamal, Christine Kurihara, and Anurag Mairal present the result of a survey of Indian medical device professionals and they propose some changes to the regulatory environment, IP protection, and other areas in “Barriers to Commercialization of Novel Medical Technologies in India.”
“Point of Care Healthcare Technology in India – Challenges and Journey Ahead: A clinician’s perspective,” by T. Sunder views how POCT may impact healthcare in India.
Nitish V. Thakor is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, USA, as well as the Director of the newly formed institute for neurotechnology, SiNAPSE, at the National University of Singapore. 
Atam Dhawan, Ph.D. obtained his B.Eng. and M. Eng. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Roorkee, Roorkee, India... 
Clifford Dacso, MD, MPH, MBA is Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology and Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, John S. Dunn Sr. Research Chair in General... 
Ritu Kamal works at Stanford Biodesign Program, Stanford, CA, as a Global Research Project Manager. She has previously worked at Roche Diagnostics as a Scientist and was a 2010... 
Christine Kurihara is Manager of Special Projects, for the Stanford Biodesign Program, Stanford, CA. In this capacity, she oversees IT, web and infrastructure projects for the program. 
Dr. Anurag Mairal is the Director, Global Exchange Programs, Stanford University, Stanford, CA. In this role, he is responsible for developing an extensive network... 
Dr. T. Sunder is a Senior Consultant Cardiothoracic and Transplant Surgeon in Apollo Hospitals, Chennai, India with over 20 years' experience in Cardiothoracic Surgery...