2018
A published foundation for MESH
The original technology-incubator and design-thinking curriculum described a hospital-based route into medical invention. [1]
Barriers to innovation
in healthcare.
Understanding what stops an idea from reaching patients, and building the education and support to move it forward.
Dr. Marc Succi and his team began the first national survey of barriers to innovation at an academic health system in 2019. Published in Nature Biotechnology in 2022, the work forms part of a continuing research program connecting medical innovation and training. [1–9]
This body of work has been cited hundreds of times and accessed over 10,000 times. Explore the publications.
Explore the survey findingsWhat holds trainees back?
The barriers-to-innovation studies examined medical students, residents, and faculty. Only 31% considered themselves innovators. Participants identified obstacles to developing ideas and the support they wanted to pursue them. [3]
Reported barriers
Share rating each barrier “most important”
Support trainees wanted
Share selecting each form of support
Understanding an idea does not mean having the confidence to act on it.
The survey also examined understanding and confidence across 17 innovation skills. The patterns varied by skill, giving educators a more specific picture of where practical instruction could help. Explore the distributions below. [3]
ExcellentGoodFairPoorVery poor
Understanding
16%18%31%31%
Confidence
24%20%53%
0%25%50%75%100%
View the full chart for all 17 skills
ExcellentGoodFairPoorVery poor
Innovation skillUnderstandingConfidence
Patent process
Understanding
16%18%31%31%
Confidence
24%20%53%
Drug development
Understanding
18%35%24%20%
Confidence
16%22%55%
Creating a prototype
Understanding
20%33%33%
Confidence
10%12%22%53%
Taking a therapeutic through clinical trials
Understanding
14%29%26%27%
Confidence
29%51%
Writing a business plan
Understanding
10%12%33%45%
Confidence
12%24%59%
Market analysis
Understanding
12%27%53%
Confidence
10%22%61%
Value proposition
Understanding
16%27%51%
Confidence
22%61%
Non-confidential marketing summary
Understanding
27%59%
Confidence
12%22%65%
Coding
Understanding
12%39%39%
Confidence
35%53%
3-D printing
Understanding
12%29%53%
Confidence
10%27%57%
Starting a company or participating in a startup
Understanding
14%27%47%
Confidence
22%59%
Working with industry: sponsored research
Understanding
22%18%53%
Confidence
10%26%59%
Working with industry: licensing IP
Understanding
12%20%63%
Confidence
26%63%
Working with industry: consulting
Understanding
16%24%51%
Confidence
10%18%63%
Submitting an invention disclosure
Understanding
24%65%
Confidence
20%67%
Working with healthcare policy legislatures
Understanding
26%27%43%
Confidence
10%26%55%
Investing: angel investing, Series A and Series B
Understanding
24%61%
Confidence
16%67%
2026 update to barriers
A 2026 study led by Dr. Succi and his team in the IO lab extended this research to faculty, clinicians, investors, industry professionals and technology-transfer staff. Among 277 respondents, funding, community support and time were the most frequently reported barriers. [9]
The study broadens the question: what support do people need at different points in the path from clinical idea to commercialization?
Barriers reported in the 2026 paper
Share agreeing that each is a restrictive barrier
A documented
research history.
2019
The barriers survey begins
Dr. Succi began the survey project that would examine barriers to innovation among medical trainees.
2020
Hands-on training enters residency
The initial MESH Core evaluation documented an innovation curriculum within a radiology residency program and department. [2]
2022
The trainee survey is published
A study led by Dr. Succi and his team reported gaps in innovation experience, resources and confidence in Nature Biotechnology. [3]
2026
The survey broadens to the innovation ecosystem
A study led by Dr. Succi and his team examined funding, community support and time across clinicians, investors, industry and technology-transfer professionals. [9]
Turning the findings
into teaching.
Dr. Succi’s international innovation courses extend that teaching beyond a single hospital. [1] [4]
Explore TeachingMeasured educational outcomes
In the 2024 MESH Core report, Dr. Succi and his team evaluated five years of delivery to 40 residents. Median knowledge scores rose from 48% before the course to 86% afterward. [6]
The team’s 2023 evaluation of a bootcamp at an international medical conference also reported higher immediate knowledge scores after teaching. [4]
About this research
What are the main barriers to innovation in healthcare?
The surveys identify time, resources, expertise and support as recurring concerns. Which barriers matter most depends on the people surveyed and the stage of development. The 2022 trainee study and 2026 stakeholder study examine different groups. [3] [9]
How does this relate to Mass General Brigham and MESH?
Dr. Succi developed this research through the MESH Incubator and collaborations at Mass General Brigham and Harvard Medical School. The work connects research on barriers to innovation with Dr. Succi’s courses inside and outside the hospital system, including international programs. The linked papers identify their authors, affiliations and methods.
Papers & sources
Read the original publications for methods, results and limitations.
- Succi MD, Uppot RN, Gee MS, McLoud TC, Brink JA. Medically Engineered Solutions in Health Care: A Technology Incubator and Design-Thinking Curriculum for Radiology Trainees. Journal of the American College of Radiology. 2018;15(6):892-896.
- Succi MD, Zamarron BF, Fintelmann FJ, Andriole KP, Ottensmeyer MP, Whitehead DC, Harris GJ, McLoud TC, Brink JA, Gee MS, Uppot RN. Initial Experience Integrating a Hands-On Innovation Curriculum Into a Radiology Residency Program and Department. Journal of the American College of Radiology. 2020;17(10):1329-1333.
- Boms O, Shi Z, Mallipeddi N, Chung JJ, Marks WH, Whitehead DC, Succi MD. Integrating innovation as a core objective in medical training. Nature Biotechnology. 2022;40(3):434-437.
- Succi MD, Cheng D, Andriole KP, Fintelmann FJ, Flores EJ, Zhang HM, Gee MS, Coburn CM, Brink JA. Integrating a healthcare innovation bootcamp into an international medical conference to democratize innovation learning. Nature Biotechnology. 2023;41(4):579-581.
- Mallipeddi NV, Chandra J, Succi MD. A strategy to incentivize innovation in the health care system: the innovation RVU. Nature Biotechnology. 2023;41(10):1485-1487.
- Liu DS, Mazurek MH, Whitehead DC, Hood MC, Choi P, Gupte A, Ottensmeyer MP, Fintelmann FJ, Uppot RN, Andriole KP, Gee MS, Brink JA, Succi MD. A Novel Design-Thinking, Hospital Innovation Core Certificate Curriculum for Radiologists and Trainees: Creation, Implementation, and Multiyear Results. Academic radiology. 2024;31(2):417-425.
- Russo MV, Di Capua J, Som A, Smith AD, Laroia ST, Succi MD. Building a Career in Radiology Innovation: A Primer for Trainees and First-Time Innovators to Act on Opportunities. Journal of the American College of Radiology. 2024;21(10):1604-1607.
- Succi MD, Rao A, Gee MS, Coburn C, Brink JA. Empowering Radiology’s Future: A Proposed Leadership and Innovation Framework for a Radiology Department. Journal of the American College of Radiology. 2024;21(10):1616-1619.
- Rao AS, Zhao L, Pulukuri S, Antony I, Rice L, Glover WJ, Murphy WM, Gupte A, Schwartzstein D, Succi MD. Survey-based insights on overcoming barriers in healthcare innovation ecosystems. Nature Biotechnology. 2026;44(7):1239-1243.
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