Within the past few months, we’ve seen how well medicine and business can work with each other. The struggle throughout the pandemic has shown that medicine and businesses need each other. Medicine needs resources and network connections commonly available to entrepreneurs, and entrepreneurs need the medical industry to keep people happy and continue their businesses. The two working together leads to results: vaccines have been immediately developed to address the pandemic.
But beyond this, business and the medical field have long been working together. Many innovations and developments were born out of that collaboration. Below, we look at the trends found within the business of medicine, and how it affects us right now.
Doctors Are Getting MBAs
A handful of individuals within the medical industry are now studying non-medical skills, choosing to study MBA instead of furthering their medical practice. Yet, this shift in focus isn’t exactly met with positivity. Many people often perceive that “business” doesn’t go well with doctors, as the Hippocratic oath places the value of human life over profits.
However, the world of healthcare is fast changing. Doctors and medical professionals now have more responsibilities, from managing their own staff or team to managing an electronic database to even calculating the price of services and procedures.
The increase in doctors studying out-of-industry skills such as management, accounting and finances, and even logistics helps hospitals become more efficient. Unlike other forms of establishment, hospitals require a particular set of skills for them to function correctly. Managers need both management expertise, medical knowledge, and business acumen to juggle profits and service. Without either, the hospital will fail to work — something many doctors have foreseen.
The Wealth of Industry-specific Paid Services
Weight loss clinics, dermatologists, ophthalmologists, these industries now enjoy a larger public awareness thanks to shrewd entrepreneurs pushing for their mainstream presence. In comparison to pre-2000, medical services were rather limited and needed constant research. To gain access to a medical procedure, a patient needs to connect to a doctor who knows someone specific within that industry.
This is no longer the case, as people now have access to the Internet, and many hospitals and professionals share a network. Patients no longer have to be put on a rather long waiting list or spend time looking for a specific service. Many things are readily available.
Documentation and Resource-Sharing Through Cloud Platforms
One of the more interesting developments to happen within the past few months is the rapid development of resource pages. This efficient and fast compilation of resource material for medical studies was done in response to the pandemic, but many experts believe it will be here to stay. Many hospitals and research facilities are closely working together to organize and collate existing knowledge, and much of this information is available for public access.
But beyond the field of medical research, the use of cloud sharing is still very much significant. The presence of electronic health records prevents data loss, especially with something as critical as medical history. It systematizes the collection of patient information and electronically stores it in a digital format, readily accessible through the cloud by health professionals.
Medical Equipment Accessibility
Thanks to the innovations in e-commerce, all types of medical equipment are now accessible. Be it for individual use or hospital use, equipment of all kinds can now be bought. Even typically difficult to procure items such as diagnostic equipment for medical purposes are now shown in online brochures. This is a far cry from the old traveling salesman, having to bring their wares for demonstration purposes or only see equipment during medical trade fairs.
For special needs individuals, this means they have access to the equipment they need to function in their daily life. From pacemakers and heart monitors to wearable physical statistic monitors and electronic wheelchairs — all of these are now readily available. Even open-source technology is now shared online, allowing makers and tinkerers to create and modify based on each individual’s needs and requirements.
Online Consultations
For a few months or so, all forms of travel were prohibited; even medical visits were discouraged. For those with pressing medical concerns, this posed a problem: going to hospitals meant being exposed to risk, yet not going is also as risky. Fortunately, video conferencing technology now allows doctors to communicate with their patients, and cloud-based monitoring devices enable doctors to track their patient’s vitals. This effectively removed the need for travel, unless highly necessary, making it safer and more efficient for everyone involved.
Businesses enabled these innovations within the medical industry. The profit-oriented nature of companies remains. But even healthcare establishments like hospital needs the resources and logistical capability of businesses, making the collaboration of both highly necessary.
