The healthcare industry is facing hardship that it hasn’t seen in over a century. Between a shortage of staff, the coronavirus pandemic that has filled the beds of relatively every hospital, and a continuous increase in fees that are draining the American people, it feels hopeless to even seek care. So what causes these issues and how can we solve them?
Here are the top challenges that are plaguing the healthcare industry.
Cybersecurity Risks
Cybersecurity attacks are becoming more common. Whereas you only had to think about big corporations being at risk of being attacked, now even small companies can quickly find themselves with a data breach.
Hospitals are at an all-time high when it comes to risks, because of the amount of data that they need to keep for their patients. You can find everything from work history, medical history, to your social security number in a healthcare organization’s database.
To combat this healthcare challenge. Organizations are having to pool more money than expected into cybersecurity. This drives up costs and cuts into the budget for everyone, whether you’re a physician or a patient.
Physician Shortage
When the Affordable Care Act passed, it allowed millions of Americans to seek treatment that they otherwise would have gone without. Because of this sudden influx, it did not give the healthcare industry a chance to adjust and bring on more physicians.
Hospitals have started to put quotas on how often physicians should be with patients. Beyond the hospital, the inclusion of telehealth has been a way to continue to make money while limiting the number of patients in the hospital itself. The only problem is that since telehealth is so new, there are no set standards on the level of care you can receive from going through with the program.
Rising Costs and Payment Methods
In America, there is a rise in consumerism when it comes to medicine and healthcare. Often, people will do everything possible, even when everything isn’t needed.
One of the biggest reasons attributed to rising healthcare costs is the rise in the age of the population. Older adults need more care than younger adults, which leads to an increase in the usage of physicians. They contribute the most to the over $4 trillion spent every year in healthcare costs.
Younger adults are having to turn to healthcare financing as a way to combat the rising costs. If you want to learn more on healthcare financing, be sure to check out the previous link.
The Healthcare Industry Needs an Overhaul
The rising costs of the healthcare industry are becoming too burdensome for the younger generation to keep up with. The healthcare industry needs a change if it wants to see people utilizing the services, rather than waiting for emergencies and hoping that they can pay.
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