Introduction Point-of-care technologies (POCTs) are essential to providing clinical care for patients, with their potential for rapid and accurate results on site supporting efficient clinical decision-making. Objectives To understand the current key needs, barriers and challenges of POCT developers for effective development and implementation of POCTs across diverse settings particularly in the domain of cancer, nutrition and infections.
Design A qualitative semi-structured focus group discussion (FGDs) was employed. The FGDs were guided by the needs assessment process and the Phase Gate Framework.
The qualitative data were coded and analysed in NVivo and refined into various themes. Setting The study was conducted in person at Cornell Tech Campus in May 2024, New York, USA.
Participants 24 participants were purposively sampled from the PORTENT (Point-of-Care Technologies for Nutrition, Infection and Cancer) network. Participants included technical developers (eg, engineers, scientists, startup leads) and expert stakeholders (eg, funders, policy advisors, clinicians and academic partners) involved in POCT development, evaluation and implementation.
Results A total of 24 participants participated in the in-person FGDs in New York (n=24).
BMJ Open published a clinical update in Research Highlights on 04 Jun 2026.
The item focuses on Exploring the needs of technical developers and stakeholders in point-of-care technology development: a qualitative study.
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