If there was one industry who didn’t miss out on any work during the (ongoing, at time of publication) COVID-19 pandemic, it was the healthcare industry. Developing new technologies to help fight the worst pandemic in more than 100 years led to some things being developed that will help the industry long after the pandemic is just a memory. Other technologies developed to help out with other industries affected by the pandemic have been adapted by the healthcare industry and are expected to be a lasting part of it. Here are some ways hospitals are expected to change once the COVID-19 pandemic is finally brought to an end.
Affordable Drugs
In a rare bipartisan sighting in modern U.S. politics, both the left and the right have made actual pushes to help lower drug prices for Americans. With an ever-growing bad image in the eye of the American people, a vaccine has the chance to help Big Pharma fix its reputation… if they do decide to make it affordable, of course, which many do expect. They already have, and certainly will get “theirs” from the government, but most experts believe the currently-theoretical vaccine will be widely available for little-to-no money.
What that will show, however, is that Big Pharma can afford to lower their prices, and as everyone from Bernie Sanders to Donald Trump takes aim at ways to lower prices on drugs (including allowing competition from foreign companies), pharmaceutical companies may finally receive enough widespread pressure to actually lower their costs for the good of a society struggling to rebuild.
Ready for the Next
A silver lining of a pandemic happening in the big data generation is the fact that we can pool data from all over the globe to determine the why’s and how’s that caused this particular pandemic to spread so rapidly and prove to be so difficult to keep at bay.
Using that information, we can prepare for future pandemics which, though scary to read, is something we need to do as a society. Many people died, but we can prevent it from happening again by putting action to the data collected so hospitals can react more quickly the next time something on such a large scale occurs.
Field Promotions
During particularly bloody wars, enlisted personnel were often promoted to officers on the battlefield for one reason or another. In the battle against COVID, many nurses and Physician Assistants had to perform duties normally beyond the scope of their work, and with a tip of the hat to successful rapid training programs, these individuals did very well performing these duties.
Many rural hospitals are underfunded, and these qualifications may lead to more “well-rounded” nurses who qualify on a number of different procedures formerly only done by doctors, saving on money, and allowing for more people at a given hospital to be knowledgeable on a given procedure.
Highlighting and Actively Working Against Racial Disparities
The coronavirus has affected minority communities exponentially worse than it has white ones. There are many reasons pointing to this, with population density and income being fair reasons to point at versus “intentional racism,” but, these issues exist because of years of systemic racism that has affected minority healthcare since minority healthcare became a thing. In Chicago, for instance, 2/3 of the deaths related to COVID have been black people, in a city where black people make up 1/3 of the population. The list of examples of racial disparities in healthcare is heartbreakingly long, but given the well-reported disproportions in COVID deaths, there is reason to hope that these issues will be actively worked against in the coming years.
Other Things
Other trends that most experts expect include more at-home care for elders, due to the fact that so many elderly people needed the care of their families during this, making a wave of new experts (most of whom realized it’s not so bad caring for the people who cared for you). Telemedicine has also increased exponentially, by necessity, but it, too, has worked quite well, and allows for more patient flexibility. That flexibility is in tune with most of these trends, in that it is something that improves the patient experience!
Photo Credit
Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay
Guest Author Bio
Sarah Daren
With a Bachelor’s in Health Science along with an MBA, Sarah Daren has a wealth of knowledge within both the health and business sectors. Her expertise in scaling and identifying ways tech can improve the lives of others has led Sarah to be a consultant for a number of startup businesses, most prominently in the wellness industry, wearable technology and health education. She implements her health knowledge into every aspect of her life with a focus on making America a healthier and safer place for future generations to come.
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