Innovation in Hospital Services from a Perspective of Technical Operations: Case Studies in University Hospitals

Aiming to an expanded analysis on the technical procedures that might be mobilized by multiple participants, the following paper approached, in the light of a neo-schumpeterian theory, the way particularities of the services industry influenced in the innovation processes in hospital service sector. In order to accomplish this goal, 44 innovation study cases have been analyzed in the four biggest university hospitals in Brazil. The results led to the fact that innovations are conceived through many participants, who mobilize and exchange experiences through operations set in different ways. The phases of such process have not been well defined; in a general sense, a process starting with a coordinator is conducted by many participants aiming to solve the problems of a defined population. The results showed the importance of knowledge exchange activities among the participants who are related to the many facets in which services are rendered in a hospital.