Future Of Healthcare Is At Home

The COVID-19 crisis has pointed out some of the shiniest spots and prominent areas of need in Indian healthcare system. On one hand, we have seen the vibrancy of Indian innovation engine, with noteworthy contributions by India-based firms and scientists for vaccines and treatments.

On the other hand, the pandemic has spotlighted both the cost inefficiencies and distribution challenges of the medical sector.

A large share of healthcare costs are incurred at hospitals, though at-home models can be much affordable and effectual. Moreover, many providers depend upon fee for service in lieu of preventive care arrangements.

Diverting care from long-term care facilities to the home would bring about remarkable savings while increasing patient satisfaction and improving clinical outcomes. Sadly, the necessary contributions made available by home care providers are usually misunderstood.

Dr Shrey Srivastav, MD - Internal Medicine, Senior Resident, Sharda Hospital, Greater Noida, states, "Now we are entering in new era, specially in the fields of diagnostic world and online medical consultation. Many mobile apps are on the surface for medical, nursing care and lab facilities. Creating an integrated medical ecosystem will future in management of patients at home. So patients will be able to share their medical records in any hospital and doctor for treatment from their home."

Dr H Sudarshan Ballal, Chairman, Manipal Hospitals, affirms, "I do believe that healthcare's future is at home, harnessing the available digital technological developments in the form of teleconsultations, remote monitoring and home visits by skilled medical practitioners when needed."

Problems

There are high volume of wasted resources that could be saved by bringing down unnecessary acute care and upgrading care coordination. More systematic care coordination could put a stop to 25 per cent of readmissions. Above one-fifth of patients could go home directly from acute care facilities and about 47 per cent of medicare beneficiaries are sent home from the hospital with at least one unmet need concerning daily living activities. A solution to this issue is effective home care.

Care at home: challenges and barriers

Much medical spending can be ascribed to care that is confusing, wasteful and chaotic: 50 per cent of readmission expenses are exhausted on patients discharged from hospital to home without plans for post-acute care; 30 per cent of patients discharged without physician orders would nonetheless be benefitted from post-acute care services. There are numerous structural hurdles that give rise to this phenomenon.

General blockades for home services incorporate confusion on the part of discharge planners and providers; who is expected to write the discharge orders? The nurse practitioner? The doctor? Other hurdles include lack of coordination, chaotic communication and wasteful transition processes.

Future preparation

To tackle these issues, we must have a more compelling, powerful voice among providers, physicians, payors, patients and government. We must boost our critical role in the future of healthcare and operate together to display the crucial task of home health.

Data and analysis must be used to prove the tenets of value-based care and push for fair, fresh reimbursement mechanisms that acknowledge our role in upgrading end results. It must be ensured that no patient goes 'home alone' if they would be benefitted from home services.

Healthcare's future will shift from episodic to continuous care. Presently care is acute-care focussed, low-frequency and centered in brick and mortar establishments. Later on, care will be connected, continuous, on-demand, virtual and synchronous.

Dr Ballal says, "Brick and mortar hospitals will be reserved only for the seriously sick patients and patients requiring surgeries and interventions. This definitely is a paradigm shift in the way healthcare will be delivered in the future and the COVID crisis gave us a big boost in managing patients at home."

He further adds, "Unless the healthcare industry adapts to this quickly, like what the other industries have done over the last few years, we will be left far behind."

Summing up

In the future, healthcare will transition from the generic to the specific. At present, care delivery is one-size-fits-all and data is secluded in silos at single points in time. In due course, care will be dynamic and scalable. At long last, the patients' experience will become humanized.