Because of Covid-19, the normal delivery of healthcare services drastically changed, almost overnight. In the early months of the pandemic, patient care suffered at the expense of difficult, but necessary preventive measures such as social distancing and public business closures.
While society adapted and slowly transitioned back to a “new normal,” many innovations from the height of the pandemic will forever affect healthcare delivery and patient expectations. Here are some post-pandemic healthcare trends to watch.
1. Remote Working and Tele-Commuting
As many employees across all sectors figured out how to maintain their current workloads while working remotely, businesses developed new policies and practices to accommodate a work from home (WFH) population.
In healthcare and many public service sectors, however, the WFH shift looked a little different. Many continued to deliver frontline care in fields where remote service was not possible. Public awareness of the vital role of healthcare workers rose, but so did burnout. Some practice specialties, like physical therapy, are still recovering from dramatic workforce shifts.
2. Telehealth
The healthcare industry quickly adopted technologies to support telehealth, in order to provide continuous care for patients during mandated isolation and ongoing social distancing.
At the same time, regulators, payors and insurance companies had to put policies in place that allow for reimbursement of these services across more treatment specialties. Today, telehealth isn’t going anywhere.
3. Patient Engagement and Expectations
As providers struggled to maintain continuity of care, patients have come to expect the flexibility of digital appointment options and scheduling options outside the typical 9-5. Although customer service, responsiveness and engagement are essential components of providing patient care, they have now become an integral part of how medicine and healthcare services are delivered.
Additionally, patients increasingly adapted to the use of technology in conjunction with their medical care. With the adoption of these convenient digital resources, many will still embrace and expect technology as part of their healthcare experience going forward.
4. Healthcare Technology Solutions
Healthcare providers, too, are becoming increasingly dependent on technology, not only for alternative methods of delivering services but for speeding up claims and reimbursements, delivering patient communications, and ensuring business continuity.
Healthcare solutions providers will need to evolve their platforms in order to incorporate new technologies that meet patient expectations of engagement.
5. Payors Respond to Innovation
Market and regulatory forces quickly pushed payors to accept new, innovative modes and methods of care delivery. As regulators seek to create more efficient healthcare delivery models, change has followed.
This is good news for many practices, because it will drive innovation and re-evaluation of outdated systems. At the same time, practices need to stay up-to-date with the latest changes, lest they see a toll on their revenue.
Stay Up-to-Date with Healthcare Industry Trends
Raintree Systems provides award-winning software for physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech-language pathology and applied behavior analysis practices. We stay up-to-date with industry trends, regulatory changes, and technological innovations, and you can too! Follow along by reading more from our blog for rehabilitation therapy practices.
