Identificação das inovações : um estudo de caso nos hospitais que integram o sistema de saúde de Caxias do Sul - RS

Abstract

The Brazilian Federal Constitution, promulgated in 1988, on its 196 article ensures that health is everybody´s right and a state duty. The government management structure and its public policies have been influenced by health themes, so being addressed to innovation and competitiveness in Brazil. Innovation is an implementation of a new product (benefit or service) either significantly improved, or a new process, or a marketing method, or a new organizational method of business practice. From the relevance of the issues related to health in the Brazilian historical and economical context, particularly in Caxias do Sul, and from the importance of innovation for the organizations it has been carried out a scientific study so as to search for a better understanding on the subject, identifying the innovations that have taken place in six out of seven hospitals members of the Caxias do Sul Health System. The methodology used has been based on qualitative research of multiple case studies, exploratory type, through in-depth interviews with managers from the participant hospitals. The contents proceeding from the interviews have been undergone to a content analysis, showing that every hospital that has participated on the study has innovated during the research period. There have been thirty-five identified innovations, namely, ten product; ten process; four marketing, and eleven organizational innovations. Management is the chief factor for innovation. Demand has been the main reason that has led hospitals to innovate their product; the process innovations have been brought about due to humanization, agility, and management. To innovate in marketing, hospitals have made use of sustainability, demand, and brand strengthening. Concerning to the sector where the innovations have taken place, it has been observed that, fifteen out of thirty-five identified innovations, have been implemented in every sector, and besides the others occurred in several hospital sectors. Twenty-three innovations have been classified as radical, and twelve as incremental and twenty-four are brand-new for the organization, remaining eleven as brand-new for the market. Finally, it has been pointed out some limitations on the investigation, as well as future research possibilities.