Current Healthcare Issues: Covid-19
Current Healthcare Issues: Covid-19
Review of Current Healthcare Issues
Public health involves engaging in activities that protect the safety of communities and improve their health through research, policy making and education. However, the reality of resource, knowledge and technology acts as a limitation for public health. These limitations end up frustrating public health efforts and even reversing health gains made (Ellis & Bach, 2015). The present paper discusses misinformation as a public health care issue that limits efforts to address Covid-19, as well as discussing the different strategies that can hinder misinformation.Current Healthcare Issues: Covid-19
A national health care issue in the USA is Covid-19 pandemic that has affected the whole country to include medical personnel, patients and members of the public. Virtually every American has been affected by the virus. Data from as late as 28th August 2020 reveals that more than 5,930,200 cases of infection have been reported in the USA with at least 181,700 deaths from the virus. On average, the country records 60,000 new cases and 1,000 deaths every day. Despite active efforts to counter the virus spread, case numbers remain consistently high across the whole nation. The lack of effective cures and control measures indicate that the virus is likely to remain an urgent health care concern for the foreseeable future (The New York Times, 2020).Current Healthcare Issues: Covid-19
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Covid-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on health care work settings. In as much as these settings are receiving unprecedented support, gratitude and solidarity, they have also become targets of the virus. In fact, the nature of the virus and how it is spread has created an alarming trend that sees medical personnel not only risk their lives but also the lives of their loved ones even as they provide care for patients with the virus. It is undeniable that ensuring access to health care systems and services is the cornerstone of successfully fighting the virus. However, the threat of infection as well as limited resources that stress medical personnel have interfered with the availability, access and delivery of medical services to counter the virus. Besides that, the large numbers of patients diagnosed with the virus have placed health systems under immense pressure and stretched them beyond their capacity so that other medical services are also affected (World Health Organization, 2020). As a result, there is a need for health systems to minimize the negative impacts of the virus by leveraging health resources.
As has been established, there is a need to leverage health systems in order to enable health systems to minimize the negative impacts of Covid-19. The health systems in the USA have achieved this through five approaches. The first approach is timely identification of new case through active surveillance and widespread testing. This has resulted in fewer cases remaining undiagnosed so that those who are infected are isolated thus supporting efforts to control the epidemic. This helps in saving lives by keeping case numbers under control so that medical personnel are able to attend to the virus cases as well as allocate resources towards addressing other health care concerns. Although reliable diagnostic testing for the virus is expensive, cheaper tests that are less reliable are being presented and approved on a regular basis (Scott, 2020).Current Healthcare Issues: Covid-19
The second approach is using scientific evidence to make efficient use of the existing medical resources. The health care system is applying evidence-based decision making to direct and maximize the use of health resources with a focus on responding to critical shortages and adapting to infection surges. The third approach is collaborating with other countries to share resources, expertise and data thus ensuring that a coordinate response is applied (Schuchat, 2020). The fourth approach is presenting a committed and strong health workforce that is protected from infection. The virus has placed unusual dangers and high demand on medical personnel with unprecedented emotional stress and workload. The medical personnel are provided with guidance on how to reduce infection risks as well as personal protective equipment to prevent virus transmission. The final approach is ensuring that essential health services continue to be provided alongside care for Covid-19 patients (Dorsett, 2020).Current Healthcare Issues: Covid-19
One must accept that public health activities entail engaging in activities to protect the safety of communities and improve their health. In addition, one must acknowledge that efforts to address Covid-19 in the USA have been hindered by misinformation. This concern can be addressed through: active surveillance and widespread testing; using scientific evidence; international collaborations to share resources, expertise and data; committed and strong health workforce; and provision of essential health services alongside Covid-19 care.
Review_of_Current_Healthcare_Issues
Current Healthcare Issues: Covid-19
