The number of people infected with coronavirus is on the rise, and hospitals and staff around the world are overwhelmed. Even though this pandemic won’t last forever, we can’t help but wonder how it will change the healthcare systems. What will healthcare as we know it today be like in the future? Let’s see what we can expect.
New Virtual Solutions
Telehealth might become the new norm in the future. Many people have been asked to call their doctors if they believe they are infected with COVID-19. By confirming diagnosis over the phone, any physical contact at the doctor’s office is avoided.
Another potential solution is the use of IoT devices. The device can be a type of implant that will notify users if there’s any change happening in their bodies. That way, the data collected can be sent to a doctor for evaluation.
Anxiety in Hospital Staff Will Increase
Doctors and nurses are working around the clock to make sure people stay alive. But they too are exposed. There’s a lack of medical equipment, and the staff often has to come up with a homemade solution to try and protect themselves. Daily exposure to COVID-19 and long hours take a toll on the hospital staff, resulting in anxiety. As they bear witness to the dying patients, doctors and nurses become mentally and physically drained. Along with anxiety, this leads to burnout. Many might quit their jobs in the future.
New Healthcare Model in the US
COVID-19 pandemic showed us how healthcare systems around the globe deal with this type of threat. And the US healthcare system didn’t exactly shine. The US healthcare model isn’t prepared to help an individual deal with this type of issue. Instead, it was created with the premise that the majority of the population would need a familiar healthcare service. Two things remain to be seen:
- How to expand access to health insurance coverage. The focus is on “Medicare for All” and the enabling of the public health insurance option.
- How the providers should be paid for their work. The focus is on the idea that a fee-for-service payment model should be replaced by a model where healthcare providers are paid based on their performance.
Conclusion
COVID-19 pandemic served at least one purpose–discovering faulty healthcare systems. Even though new solutions might be on the rise, people in charge will have to work hard to upgrade the current healthcare system and make it better.
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