Rebuilding Healthcare

“A proper building grows naturally, logically, and poetically out of all its conditions” Louis Sullivan

I read with interest the article It's’ Time to Build by Marc Andreessen.

As Marc notes, “part of the problem is clearly foresight, a failure of imagination. But the other part of the problem is what we didn’t *do* in advance, and what we’re failing to do now. And that is a failure of action, and specifically our widespread inability to *build*.?. . . You don’t just see this smug complacency, this satisfaction with the status quo and the unwillingness to build, in the pandemic, or in healthcare generally. You see it throughout Western life, and specifically throughout American life”. In essence, a call to action to get beyond our political differences and proactively build industries of the future, including healthcare.

To build for tomorrow, the challenge of the present is gaining a consensus for forward momentum in this time of transition:?to let go of the past to create to energy and capacity,?to assimilate the turbulence and find clarity for a new normal, to lean in with action and resolve, to build the foundations for the future.

In this moment of crisis for healthcare, the future is already upon us.?As evidenced in our struggle to assimilate the impact of “virtual care” becoming a core and persistent feature of the new model of care; from your first encounter, to AI-enabled triage, to primary care visits, to wellness and therapy, and on to chronic disease management.

The health delivery structures we built to serve our patients assumed they would always to come to us, for all their care, on our terms.?In the new normal these buildings now appear to be earmarked for the most urgent, technically advanced, and acute care experiences.?And, hopefully, be re-designed for flexibility and capacity to scale for the next crisis.

Principles to Guide Us

Agreeing with Marc, now is the time to build for the new normal; a digital healthcare infrastructure equal to or better than the physical structures of the past. As we architect the design, here are a suggested set of consumer-centered principles to consider:

1.????Build a health system that works for consumers anchored in active engagement in your health and well-being

2.????Build a health system that respects the need for privacy, security, and transparency

3.????Build a health system that informs proactively and enables real choice

4.????Build a health system that costs are aligned with measurable quality and evidenced-based outcomes

5.????Build a health system that provides equal access to all with the resources necessary for crisis response

The Path Forward

It is in the DNA of our country that from times of turbulence we have committed to brighter futures. This is our time for healthcare; not go back, but act in an innovative way forward. And, recognize that it is not technology that is the barrier or holds us back; its human will and leadership.

Therefore, as leaders, let’s be inspired builders. Set the scaffolding for an agile path forward constructed by empowered teams of experts. Start with strong foundations, upward digitally floor by floor.

This is within our reach. Let’s agree to not settle or long for what once was but build the new normal, together.

And begin with the end in mind . . .

“Always design a thing by considering it in its next larger context” Eliel Saarinen

Enjoy the read . . .