In a recent blog post, Andrew Bachrodt & Dan Cosentino of ECG Management Consultants review healthcare executives’ outlook on the US healthcare system for 2021.
Disruption and uncertainty have defined the healthcare landscape over the past several years, with healthcare leaders across the nation seeking answers on how to keep their organizations relevant and viable. As 2019 came to an end, healthcare leaders projected 2020 to be a year for stabilization after the rapid growth and political uncertainty of the previous few years.
Clearly, the 2020 healthcare landscape did not live up to that expectation. The pandemic and its disruptive effects undoubtedly will leave an enduring mark on the healthcare sector, while also spurring significant changes in healthcare delivery.
To develop a more complete outlook heading into 2021, ECG surveyed more than 80 C-suite leaders in late 2020 to understand their key areas of focus and what to expect for healthcare this year. Below are six themes that emerged from our conversations. Perhaps unsurprisingly, each has some direct linkage to the pandemic.
1. COVID-19
COVID-19 continues to be the leading concern for provider organizations, with nearly every C-suite leader’s priorities having been affected by the pandemic in some way. While some organizations navigated the challenges that stemmed from the public health emergency better than others, hospital leaders acknowledged the business of healthcare is forever changed as a result of the pandemic.
For most C-suite leaders, dealing with COVID-19 remains at the forefront of their 2021 agenda, and nearly all believe it will remain so at least until summer or fall. Further, these leaders believe the impacts of the pandemic will have a lasting impact on day-to-day operations, though most also acknowledge their operational and care delivery model has become more efficient and consumer- and patient-centric as a result of changes made in 2020—be it the adoption of digital health solutions that improve patient access; implementation of care standards and care management protocols that foster flatter, nimbler operations; and many others.
Returning to prepandemic clinical care service volumes is the area of greatest concern cited by many C-suite leaders, followed closely by the expectation that patients may be sicker and more complex, having foregone diagnosis or treatment for disease in 2020. Emergency department volumes are not expected to return to prior peaks, with patients having found alternative sources of care for nonemergent cases. Surgical caseloads in ASCs have mostly regained prepandemic activity levels, and some have grown, as migration of certain cases from the hospital has accelerated.
At the time of our calls, most leaders were in the midst of a second COVID-19 surge and concerned about potential new strains, and all were awaiting or just receiving their initial round of vaccines. Nearly all cite the vaccine rollout as the most critical milestone event of 2021. Reluctance by some healthcare workers to get the vaccine is frustrating to many.
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