In the Kingdom of Expertness, The Profane is King Carriers of Medical Innovations

In this paper we intend to understand the embeddedness of heterogeneous actors in the emerging field of telemedicine. We identify actors who possess medical knowledge and are classified as Experts, as well as other actors, Profanes, who control technology, another form of knowledge. Currently both sets of actors are merged and are involved in the creation of what may be seen as a social construction of medical innovation. This dichotomy between Profanes and Experts, is analysed by following several recent French medical telemedicine programs. In this paper we will identify the actors, typologies and trajectories of these programs. The analysis then will proceed to determine how the localisation of innovation influences its evolution, and provides the identity of a heterogeneous actor network. In conclusion we will present trajectories in a broader social dimension, where arenas are built beyond the initial users, where past conventions challenge the affinity between the Profanes’ status and the Experts’ value; between medical knowledge and a technical savoir-faire.