A Framework for Assessing Sustainability Conflicts in the Design of Medical Devices

TL;DR

This paper tackles sustainability conflicts in medical device design by proposing an integrated framework that cross-links environmental, economic, and social objectives. The framework combines product life cycle mapping, cause–effect analysis, and multi-criteria decision analysis to identify, quantify, and resolve trade-offs, demonstrated on an oxygen concentrator. It yields a composite sustainability score and a conflict database to guide data-driven, regulator-aligned design decisions. The case study reveals significant environmental and social tensions and shows how the framework can support early-stage optimization and benchmarking across devices.

Abstract

Medical devices improve healthcare outcomes but often involve sustainability conflicts across environmental, economic, and social pillars. Existing approaches typically prioritize one or two pillars and lack a unified framework to assess cross-domain conflicts. This paper presents a structured framework to identify and quantify sustainability conflicts in medical device design. It integrates life cycle analysis, cause-effect mapping, and multi-criteria decision analysis to evaluate the impact of design choices across all three pillars. A case study of an oxygen concentrator illustrates the framework's application and generates a composite sustainability score based on identified trade-offs. The framework supports informed and data-driven design decisions while meeting regulatory and ethical requirements. This work addresses a key gap in sustainable medical device development by offering a repeatable and quantifiable approach to conflict assessment and resolution.

Figures (2)

• Figure 1: Process flowchart for sustainability assessment.
• Figure 2: Cause-effect graph of oxygen concentrator across life cycle stages.