Introduction
As the defining global health crisis of our time, Covid-19 has had a considerable impact on different aspects of life in the whole world. Since the first case of coronavirus that was identified in Wuhan, China at the end of 2019, over 130 million individuals have been infected with this respiratory disease. In light of the rapidly evolving Covid-19 challenge, the American healthcare system has faced numerous issues, such as shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) for the medical staff, inadequate safety precautions, as well as the lack of ICU beds. To address these problems and ensure that the highest quality services are provided to patients, health institutions were required to take appropriate measures, such as the adoption of telehealth, increase in the hospital bed capacity, and conducting training sessions for the medical staff to improve their diagnostic skills.
To minimize the negative influence of Covid-19 on the healthcare industry, a variety of additional strategies should be implemented in the future. For instance, it would be essential to support the provider workforce by cross-training, creating contingency staffing models, and increasing ancillary support for frontline workers. Even though numerous coronavirus vaccines have been approved and deployed lately, healthcare institutions still need to change their usual workflow to satisfy the needs of patients.
Overview of the Problem
Coronavirus can be defined as a respiratory disease that is characterized by numerous symptoms ranging from cough, fever, and chills to difficulty breathing and pneumonia. At the same time, there are cases when getting infected by Covid-19 can result in death. For example, approximately four percent of reported COVID-19 cases are fatal, whereas seasonal flu generally kills less than one percent of infected individuals (Lotfi et al.). Thus, healthcare providers consider coronavirus a dangerous disease that should be treated under the provision of doctors in the majority of cases. A huge amount of attention should be paid to patients suffering from chronic diseases, as these individuals are at high risk of facing severe symptoms of the disease. Moreover, taking into consideration that elderly population groups usually experience severe symptoms of the disease due to physiological changes that come with aging, they require the best patient care.
The American healthcare system has been developing for several decades to provide high-quality services and meet the expectations of the local population. Simultaneously, nobody could expect that Covid-10 would spread the world so fast, which is the reason why the USA was not prepared to handle the challenges and issues associated with this pandemic. At the beginning of 2020, a vast number of American health institutions started developing strategic plans based on the idea to facilitate the process of delivering medical care to patients. On the one hand, some recommendations were taken into account. For example, hospital bed capacity has increased by thirty-forty percent in the majority of hospitals (Lotfi et al.). Also, medical staff received coronavirus-specific training to ensure patients are treated appropriately. On the other hand, healthcare providers still struggle with intensified capacity, supply, and workforce challenges.
Adoption of Telehealth
One of the main changes that various healthcare facilities implemented was the adoption of telehealth. Even though this technology is not new in the area of healthcare, it was not widely used before Covid-19. Patients mainly used this technology when they were not able to get to the hospital on time. Nowadays, the use of digital information and communication technologies is extremely popular, as it helps to minimize the impact of patient surges on facilities. Furthermore, the use of telehealth is an incredibly useful intervention to reduce potential infectious exposures. The number of telehealth visits has increased by nearly twenty percent since the beginning of 2020 (Monaghesh, and Hajizadeh). As the months went on, the used technologies were improved, so both health providers and patients would be satisfied with the quality of services. Today, telehealth can be used for screenings, providing coaching, and delivering advance care planning.
Adoption of this technology into the field of healthcare during the pandemic is dependent on the concept of access to healthcare. In other words, to achieve the best health outcomes in the period of unpredictable spread of Covid-19, people should have the opportunity to stay in touch with doctors. It can be done with the help of phone-only and video visits. Access to care consists of four essential elements, such as coverage, services, timeliness, and workforce. Although telehealth does not have a significant impact on coverage, it does affect the rest of the elements of this concept. The use of telecommunication technologies guarantees that medical services are provided by qualified and culturally competent workers timelessly. It is predicted that the number of people using telehealth will be increasing after a pandemic, as the quality of services is equal to the quality of services received in clinical settings.
Changes in Supply Chain
When it comes to the influence of coronavirus on the supply chain, it is important to take into consideration personal protective equipment (PPE), as well as cleaning and disinfecting materials. The main issues related to the supply chain arose when Covid-19 started spreading throughout the world. Around fifty percent of masks were produced in China before the first cases of coronavirus were identified (Howard et al.). Once this country realized the magnitude of the problem, it immediately cut back on exports of masks to other parts of the world. Therefore, other countries, including the USA, were required to increase the number of masks on their own. As a result, American manufacturers like 3M and Honeywell took appropriate measures to increase their production of N95 masks (Howard et al.). Consequently, healthcare facilities were supplied with needed personal protective equipment.
Once this problem was addressed, the problem of adverse skin events arose. Based on the information from the research study conducted by Lan et al. in China, nearly 97% of health workers report skin damage related to prevention measures. Washing hands ten times per day and wearing face masks for over six hours inevitably results in adverse skin events. Despite these effects, healthcare workers are still required to wear personal protective equipment and follow workplace hygiene procedures. Therefore, the concept of professionalism takes place in this case. Nowadays, the medical staff uses recommendations provided by the World Health Organization in daily practice for the benefit of the individual and community being served. Accordingly, changes in the supply chain have affected the way medical care is delivered in healthcare settings; however, additional recommendations regarding skin adverse effects caused by PPE are required.
Hiring Healthcare Professionals from Other Countries
Such a considerable spread of Covid-19 throughout the whole world has caused staff shortages in numerous countries, including the USA. On the one hand, this problem existed before the first cases of Covid-19 were identified. On the other hand, a vast spread of this respiratory disease has contributed to a higher number of healthcare workers who quit their job. First, it can be explained by health concerns, as medical staff should be in constant contact with patients infected with the coronavirus. Second, some individuals quit their jobs in healthcare facilities due to overworking and inappropriate working conditions. Nowadays, it is predicted that the US will need to hire over two million new healthcare workers by 2025 to satisfy the needs of patients effectively (Kavilanz). Therefore, numerous healthcare facilities have decided to hire new healthcare workers from other countries.
To become a healthcare worker in one of the American hospitals, a person should correspond to several appropriate requirements. For instance, it is essential to pass both the USMLE Step 1 and USMLE Step 2 CK, as well as obtain appropriate practical skills at least (Witter et al.). Even though it is difficult to take the job position of a physician or nurse in the US, it is associated with a variety of benefits for the person. For example, job stability, fast-paced workday, opportunities for growth, and great pay belong to the list of the main benefits of working in the American healthcare industry. In turn, if a certain hospital has well-qualified personnel, it can create objectives and set goals for where the organization sees itself in the long term. In other words, the concept of strategic planning can be used to succeed in the area of healthcare.
Finances
Another considerable issue faced by the majority of American healthcare institutions is associated with finances. Covid-19 is strongly interrelated with the financial crisis in different parts of the business, including healthcare. Hospitals that prepared for the pandemic with the help of telehealth and substantial money on hand were not affected by the coronavirus significantly. In turn, the rest of the hospitals are predicted to lose an average of $2,800 per COVID-19 patient case (King). To address this problem in the best way, the American Hospital Association is focused on getting more money for the CARES Act provider relief fund. Additionally, this organization is asking for full forgiveness on more than eighty-five billion dollars in advance Medicare payment loans to hospitals (Haseman). In case these requests are not reviewed, the American healthcare industry will face the biggest crisis in the history of this field. In turn, it can result in delivering poor-quality care.
Also, it is predicted that a global vacation will be the only way for healthcare institutions to emerge from the pandemic without considerable financial losses. The majority of healthcare costs are dedicated to the resolution of this problem at the moment. Therefore, once the pandemic is over, hospitals would get the opportunity to invest money in the further development of their activity. As of April 2021, approximately eighteen percent of all Americans are fully vaccinated (Haseman). It is difficult to predict when humanity will reach herd immunity, although Biden suggests that this goal can be achieved by the end of the year (Haseman). If the pandemic lasts for more than one year, the global healthcare industry will face unavoidable consequences. As a result, the quality of provided services can be significantly lower, thereby affecting the health status of various population groups.
Conclusion
Nowadays, the whole world is required to adapt to new conditions of living and taking care of personal well-being. When it comes to the healthcare industry, numerous changes happened in this area. For instance, the majority of hospitals faced financial issues, changes in the supply chain, shortage of medical personnel, and issues with direct communication with patients. Despite such a high number of problems, the American healthcare industry takes appropriate measures to adapt to the pandemic and provide patients with the best medical care. The adoption of telehealth has helped medical workers to reduce potential infectious exposures and serve patients promptly. Simultaneously, the strategy of hiring new healthcare professionals from other countries is expected to help hospitals address the problem of staff shortage.
It is essential to note that there is a variety of concepts that can be applied to the strategies discussed above. For instance, the concepts of professionalism, access to care, and strategic planning are strongly associated with the changes that occurred in the past year within the healthcare industry. To address these problems, healthcare providers should take into consideration a mix of different concepts, such as ethics, stewardship, and effective leadership. If they are applied correctly, the consequences of a pandemic can be minimized. As of April 2021, the American government and healthcare industry should take into account vaccination and dedicate all the appropriate resources to this procedure. Once the majority of American citizens are vaccinated, the healthcare industry will start the process of recovery.
Works Cited
Haseman, Janie. “When Will Everyone Be Vaccinated for COVID-19? Here’s How the Vaccine Rollout Is Going”. USA Today, 2021, Web.
Kavilanz, Parija. “The US Can’t Keep Up with Demand for Health Aides, Nurses and Doctors”. Cnnmoney, 2018, Web.
King, Robert. “Analysis: Large Majority of Hospitals Could Lose $2,800 for Treating Each COVID-19 Patient”. Fiercehealthcare, 2020, Web.
Lan, Jiajia et al. “Skin Damage Among Health Care Workers Managing Coronavirus Disease-2019.” Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology vol. 82,5 (2020): 1215-1216.
Lotfi, Melika et al. “COVID-19: Transmission, Prevention, and Potential Therapeutic Opportunities”. Clinica Chimica Acta, vol 508, no. 2, 2020, pp. 254-266. Elsevier BV.
Monaghesh, Elham, and Alireza Hajizadeh. “The Role of Telehealth During COVID-19 Outbreak: A Systematic Review Based on Current Evidence”. BMC Public Health, vol 20, no. 1, 2020, pp. 1-20. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
Witter, Sophie et al. “Why Do People Become Health Workers? Analysis from Life Histories in 4 Post‐Conflict and Post‐Crisis Countries”. The International Journal of Health Planning and Management, vol 33, no. 2, 2018, pp. 449-459. Wiley.