Specialization of care and unlock of clinicians capacity
Yet another healthcare trend accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This video talks about frugal innovation and how simple process innovations enable hospitals to deliver world-class healthcare at very affordable prices.
Healthcare trend accelerated by COVID-19: Specialization of care and unlock of clinicians capacity
Already in 2013, the Harvard Business Review published the article "Delivering World-Class Health Care, Affordably". Thanks to frugal innovation, hospitals in India had found ways to provide world-class healthcare at very affordable prices.
So how do they do it?
Process innovation #1: A hub-and-spoke configuration of assets
Spoke facilities channel patients from remote locations to urban hubs for more sophisticated procedures and surgery.
- Larger volumes, more experience
- Specialization of physicians
- Rapid improvement of skills
- Higher productivity
- Better quality, better outcomes
Process innovation #2: An innovative way of determining who should do what
Low-cost healthcare workers took over basic tasks, freeing time from specialists. General physicians are encouraged to become specialists, and specialists to become super-specialists.
More staff supports the most skilled surgeons and specialists, radically extending their reach and efficiency.
Acceleration of this trend due to the coronavirus pandemic
In May 2020, Nature Medicine published a report on "Fast and frugal innovations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic". Amongst them are some fostering the specialization of care and unlocking clinicians capacity, e.g.: Task-shifting in Intensive Care Units: Rapid transformation of existing operating infrastructure and repurposing of human resources.
COVID-19 has required unprecedented responses from all countries. Often, there was no time for traditional processes of testing and trialing.
Speeding up the specialization of care and enhancing clinicians efficacy is at least one positive outcome of this global crisis.
