Very few things could rival COVID-19 in terms of catalyzing and accelerating the long-anticipated “transformation of healthcare.” There will be no “back to normal” once this crisis is over.
But that’s not entirely a bad thing.
For far too long the healthcare industry has been stuck in a stagnant paradigm. We talked about real change, but we didn’t really change. Then, suddenly, we were forced to.
What’s Changed
Call center agents and appointment schedulers became ill and were not available. The old reliable fax machine was overwhelmed, critical messages lost. The pre-existing appointments didn’t convert to video appointments and those that did were troublesome and expensive.
Patients with non-communicable diseases fell through the cracks from their post-acute or urgent care episodes and existing non-urgent patients were put on “hold” and therefore felt lost or forgotten. They struggled to reconnect and reestablish their continuum of care. And all the one-off “technology solutions'' that promised improvements just added complexity and cost.
The push for change in care delivery will not come from payers and providers, but from the consumers. New expectations of care have risen from the pandemic. The crisis created more support for forces that reshape the existing healthcare system to include a heightened appreciation for and requirement of digital operations.
Adapting to the Change
The industry and its regulators have rapidly adopted an “efficiency” mindset and the tools and technologies that come with it—remote workforce; social networking; high tech, coordination and collaboration tools; telehealth and telemedicine—the list goes on and on.
Most importantly, we are now witnessing global, national, regional and local data and information-sharing. As the entire industry shifts from a strategy of diagnosis and treatment to a predictive and preventative method, healthcare professionals are sharing best practices with one another. It’s Incredible, and all this has happened in just a few short weeks.
As a result of this coronavirus crisis and our collective response to it, we just might be seeing what healthcare can look like once this crisis has passed.
And it will pass, leaving all of us with a very different idea of what a transformed and consumer-centric healthcare industry could look like. The end of the COVID-19 crisis will mark the beginning of healthcare’s promising future.
Seeing the Future
Many health systems and practices across the country have already realized this future by adopting Blockit’s digital care coordination platform. Busy providers, schedulers, and staff members have reaped the benefits of a unified solution that seamlessly integrates with existing workflows.
By working with Blockit’s vision to solve for leakage by bringing about keepage and gettage, these care settings have empowered their providers and staff to find the patients that leaked out of the system, keep the patients that remained, and get new patients who desire an improved administrative experience.
With the lessons learned from the pandemic, we look forward to partnering with more healthcare professionals to bring about the future of our industry now. If you’re ready to equip your practice with the tools to adapt to these sudden changes, we’ve love to talk with you. Set up a no-pressure conversation with a member of our team by clicking here.
Dave Gregorio is the Chief Customer Officer at Blockit and the author of the Purpose Quotient®, a nationally recognized framework for Organizational Development. A 30 year healthcare industry professional with a passion for people, Dave is the founder of the Heroes to Healthcare mission and CEO of ImPowerQ Associates LLC.
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