More than 50% of the population in the US alone suffers from orthopaedic conditions, especially due to the rise in desk/hybrid jobs since the pandemic. Orthopaedic practices have also caught the wind!
The COVID-19 pandemic caused radical changes to the daily lives of Americans and how medical practices conducted business. For a time, operations froze until procedures were put in place to ensure the safety of everyone involved.
Even though things have become better than they were a couple of years ago, there are still issues in regions with active cases. Yes, there are still active cases of the infection in some places.
So, follow along to find out how orthopaedic practitioners are making things better for those in areas still experiencing the infection.
What are Orthopedic Practices?
Orthopaedic practices specialize in diagnosing, treating, and managing conditions related to the musculoskeletal system. These practices are categorized based on their focus and treatment methods:
- General Orthopedics: Treats various musculoskeletal conditions, including fractures, sprains, and arthritis.
- Sports Medicine: Focuses on sports-related injuries such as ACL tears, rotator cuff injuries, and tendinitis.
- Pediatric Orthopedics: Specializes in treating children with musculoskeletal issues, including scoliosis, congenital deformities, and growth abnormalities.
- Spine Surgery: Addresses conditions like herniated discs, spinal stenosis, and scoliosis requiring surgical or non-surgical interventions.
- Joint Replacement: Focuses on replacing damaged joints, such as hips, knees, and shoulders, often due to arthritis or trauma.
- Trauma Orthopedics: Deals with complex fractures, dislocations, and severe accident injuries.
- Orthopedic Oncology: Manages bone and soft tissue tumours, including sarcomas and metastatic cancers.
Common conditions treated by orthopaedic practitioners mainly focus on musculoskeletal issues. For instance, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, broken bones from trauma, ACL tears, scoliosis, joint issues, congenital disorders and osteoporosis.
What Can Be Done to Curb Infection?
Here are a few things that the practitioner can do to curb the infection’s spread. Here are a few things that are done:
Offer Telehealth Options:
Individuals cannot pass the virus if they are not in the same location, which is why the use of telehealth to see patients exploded over the last year.
It is a remote way to consult with large numbers of patients quickly. Everyone involved maintains the distance they need to stay safe while getting the information they need to make educated decisions.
This trend will likely stay popular for years because of the convenience it offers people who may find it too difficult to travel to an office.
It also allows the medical practice to keep their physical examination rooms free for patients needing them most.
Use Electronic Health Records:
Switching to electronic health records means fewer physical copies for multiple people to handle and potentially transfer germs to each other.
Limiting the number of common touchpoints between employees helps compartmentalize risk.
Electronic records are a safer way to consult with patients and do wonders for improving the efficiency of medical practices. There are often fewer administrative errors, and bottlenecks hidden within office operations are removed. Learn more about seamless NextGen EHR integration.
Screen Patients:
Taking reasonable precautions to prevent a sick person from entering your practice enables you to continue operating at full strength. Send your patients a checklist before their scheduled in-person appointment. Remind them of the symptoms of COVID-19 and the behaviour expected of them when they are in the office.
Unfortunately, not everyone adheres to such checklists, so you should implement extra precautions within the office. When patients appear at the office, check their temperature at the door.
Separate any patients who previously had COVID-19, even if they are no longer contagious, as an added safety measure.
Social Distancing:
As stated above, proper precautions do not end when the patient enters your office. Even if a patient has no visible symptoms, that does not mean they are in the clear.
Keeping hand sanitiser at various locations in the office will keep surfaces clean.
Compartmentalize risks by maintaining social distancing in waiting rooms and limiting contact between employees and patients to only when necessary.
One way to accomplish both is to implement text messaging directions to let patients know when they can enter.
Utilize Website/Social Media:
The internet is a great way to update your patients on your office status and practices. When the pandemic first hit, many offices closed entirely.
If you keep active on social media, you can quickly alert your followers when you open back up.
Optimize your website to share the workload with your staff. Online scheduling helps prevent walk-ins from appearing unnecessarily.
A dedicated page for frequently asked questions will give patients quick answers when employees might otherwise be unavailable.
Safely Speed up Discharge:
Discharging patients quickly prevents the needless overlap of multiple patients and lessens the risk of spreading the disease. Doing this in a safe timeline for the patient is a challenge.
Rely on your experience to provide your patients with the greatest care possible.
You should never sacrifice quality just to see a greater number of patients within a small window. Closely observe patients after surgery to gauge whether it is time to discharge.
Advancements in Orthopedic Practices
Advancements in technology and techniques have transformed orthopaedic care, offering better outcomes and faster recovery:
- Robotic-Assisted Surgery: Precision-driven joint replacement and minimally invasive procedures.
- 3D Printing: Custom prosthetics and implants tailored to individual anatomy.
- Regenerative Medicine: Stem cell therapy and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for tissue repair.
- Arthroscopy: Minimally invasive surgery for diagnosing and treating joint issues.
- Wearable Technology: Sensors for monitoring rehabilitation and gait analysis.
- Biodegradable Implants: Temporary implants that dissolve over time, eliminating the need for removal surgery.
Stay Strong
New strains were discovered, potentially complicating efforts to return to pre-pandemic habits. Orthopaedic practices must remain flexible in their operations and be willing to adapt accordingly.
A resilient mindset and a strong team are crucial to keeping your practice afloat. Keep morale high by implementing team-building initiatives, and your work culture might even become stronger than it was originally.
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