The collateral damage due to Covid-19
Healthcare
Image source: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
Did you know?
Noncommunicable diseases (NCD) kill 41 million people each year, equivalent to 71% of all deaths globally. Each year, 15 million people die from an NCD between the ages of 30 and 69 years; more than 85% of these "premature" deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. And yet, we see a large scale disruption of healthcare services impacting the treatment of NCDs.
Impact of COVID-19 on NCDs
According to the recent survey by WHO, prevention and treatment services for Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) have been severely disrupted since the pandemic began. The survey confirms that more than half the countries surveyed (155 countries) have partially or fully disrupted health services for diseases like diabetes, hypertension, cancer, etc.
Why is it happening?
The Covid-19 epidemic is causing real difficulty for people who already have other diseases or are at risk of catching them.
Access: Many people can’t or won’t go to the doctor to seek care
Medicines: Patients cannot receive the medicine they need as healthcare services are burdened by the scale of Covid-19
Diagnosis: Labs can’t diagnose these other diseases in time
Equipments: Health workers can’t deliver the things people need to keep them safe
This has lead to more infections and delayed treatment, which can be fatal in some cases.
Where is the impact?
40-50% of countries reported complete or partial disruption of services for hypertension, diabetes and cancer treatment etc.
The impact is said to be even more serious for low-income countries
There is an adverse impact on the healthcare infrastructure as well. With a decrease in footfall of patients, hospitals are finding it difficult to survive which has halted investments in healthcare infrastructure
What is being done?
Alternative strategies have been established in most countries to support the people at the highest risk to continue receiving treatment.
More than 70% of countries reported collecting additional data on the number of Covid-19 patients who also have an NCD
17% percent of countries reporting have started to allocate additional funding from the government budget to include the provision of NCD services in their national Covid-19 plan
Globally 58% of countries are now using telemedicine (advice by telephone or online means) to replace in-person consultations; in low-income countries, this figure is 42%
What more can be done?
Focus resources on non-communicable, chronic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular conditions
Drive efficiency, shifting care from hospital to outpatient settings
Use of technology: Teleconsultation is increasingly being used in most of the countries. Further, governments across the globe should incentivize innovation for unmet needs and vulnerable populations