The Future of Health Care After COVID-19

My hope is that years from now, when we look back on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, it will have served a few purposes. First and foremost, COVID-19 highlights the unimaginable bravery and heroism of our frontline health care workers, for whom we are eternally grateful.

Second, it inspires a renewed appreciation and gratitude for infection prevention and control professionals, as well as infectious disease clinicians. These specialists are likely to be in high demand as health care facilities, ranging from acute-care hospitals to long-term care, navigate a new normal and reevaluate their standards of disinfection, sterile processing, and hand hygiene protocols.

Lastly, COVID-19 will have long-lasting and perhaps permanent effects on the health care system as a whole: no more crowded physician office waiting rooms, an increased emphasis and reliance on telemedicine, and perhaps a change in the way we consume scientific literature, to name a few.

Our cover story this month on page 14, by Carly Sedlock, MD, and Contagion^® Editor-in-Chief Jason C. Gallagher, PharmD, FCCP, FIDP, FIDSA, BCPS, details Temple University Hospital’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, a model that other health care systems may be able to adapt and follow for future outbreaks of infectious diseases.

Also in this issue you’ll find a recap of our recent Contagion^® webinar titled, “What Clinicians Need to Know About COVID-19,” featuring Tufts Medical Center’s Helen Boucher, MD, FACP, FIDSA; Emory University’s Carlos del Rio, MD; and Stanford University’s Stanley Deresinski, MD. It is through educational offerings such as this that we remain committed to serving as a resource for our audience of infectious disease clinicians.

Please contact Editorial Director Alexandra Ward, MA, at award@mjhlifesciences.com if you have any questions or comments.

Stay informed, stay well, and thank you for reading.

Mike Hennessy Sr Chairman and founder