It’s no secret that coronavirus has changed society forever. It has made us more aware of the dangers of hand-shaking, large crowds, and sharing of resources when global pandemics are essentially all around us. While we work to find a cure/vaccine, big engagements are limited, and will be for the foreseeable future.
Businesses are fundamentally changing how they operate so they can remain relevant. Medical providers are changing their accessibility so they can still do business from home and keep their patients safe and healthy. Healthcare providers are making their medical services more accommodating for people from around the world.
There have been both good and bad developments from this pandemic. When it comes to healthcare, we want you to be in the know. Here are the major changes we are going to be seeing across the county for a long time to come:
- Telemedicine Advancements: Telemedicine was always something that doctors were considering, but had been hesitant to have their patients adopt it. Now, because of coronavirus, the telemedicine advancements have been accelerated by a decade. More businesses than ever before are embracing medical apps that enable them to talk directly to patients, from the comfort of their homes. Every single medical office has had to adopt this technology, whether they want to or not.
- Step Away from Traditional Employer-Based Health Insurance: In this kind of floundering economy, employers will be under more pressure than ever to reduce costs. While companies look at ways to manage costs through this difficult time, we will see layoffs and furloughs of people losing their health coverage. This will make it even more difficult for those patients with ongoing health needs like diabetes to maintain their treatment, and will need to look for alternative ways to get care.
- Greater Reliance on Health Aids: Nursing homes have gone through their share of controversies over the years, and that is especially true today. During this coronavirus outbreak they have been hotbeds for the spread of the virus – and subsequent deaths. This kind of centralization of elderly people will be traded in for personalized at-home health aids. Keeping elderly people at home will provide them with a greater quality of life, as well as more personalized care tailored to their needs.
- Opportunity for Pharma to Lower Drug Pricing: Every politician has blasted major pharmaceutical companies as profiteers. Never before today have people placed so much pressure on these companies to finally break the cycle and offer their medications at a rate that is affordable. People are calling for the profiting to stop, and coronavirus might be enough to make it happen.
A More Accessible Future
Although coronavirus has brought economic hardship and turmoil to the country, it has also ignited a healthcare conversation that was inevitable. Our new reliance on telemedicine and virtual care is going to make it easier than ever before for people to receive the care they need. Here at Welby Health, we’ve created a medical platform that enables healthcare providers to connect with their patients in a way that is simple and yet powerful. Now patients can monitor their personal diabetes, blood pressure, and other health conditions from home, while staying plugged in with their doctor.
This is the future of healthcare for us.
