Abstract:

Purpose: This article aims to clarify how the technological equipment of hospitals has changed during and following the Health Transformation Program (2003-2013), in which the capacity of the Turkish health system as a whole has grown remarkably. Method: In the article, the growth in the numbers of the main diagnostic medical imaging technologies (namely, MR, CT, Ultrasound, Doppler Ultrasound, and ECHO) in hospitals of Türkiye between 2002 and 2020 and their distributions among public and private sectors have been descriptively investigated. The changes in their total numbers over years are assessed within the framework of the typical S-shaped growth curve phases, which is widely used in examining the diffusion of innovations. Findings: There has been rapid growth in the medical device capacity of hospitals in the country during and after the Health Transformation Program. The MRI and CT devices have experienced all stages of the S-shaped diffusion curve. The Ultrasound device is at the slowing growth stage of an S-shaped growth path. The Doppler Ultrasound and ECHO devices are about to complete the exponential growth phase and pass the slowing growth phase. After the 2014s, the growth rates of MR, CT, Doppler Ultrasound, and ECHO devices in private hospitals decreased, but their steady or accelerated growth continued in public hospitals. Originality: The ‘diffusion of technology’ framework has been used to analyze the current transformation of the Turkish health system, and the contributions of public and private sectors to the medical technology intensity of the country’s health system have been explored.

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