Learning From COVID-19
Wongel Bogale, Print Staff Writer
September 7 2020
Emergency departments typically exist in a perpetual ready mode. They have to be prepared to manage every situation that comes through hospital doors. However, the recent COVID-19 events have challenged ER departments and hospitals across Canada in an unprecedented way. With close to 100, 000 confirmed cases in Canada as of the beginning of June 2020, hospitals have had to learn how to treat large numbers of COVID-19 patients. Provincial and federal governments have also had to learn how to collaborate and share responsibilities.
The treatment of COVID-19 patients across the country has undeniably challenged the health care system and put a strain on many resources. The shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health care workers continues to be a big concern. Canada is among many countries around the world subjected to the reduced exportation of medical supplies. This has led to increased production of Canadian manufactured PPE rather than the dependence on imported goods.
In concert with the lack of available supplies, the Canadian healthcare system has also experienced a multitude of challenges. Many health care workers and hospitals became under great pressure very quickly. Increasing numbers of COVID-19 patients also led to overly busy hospitals. Elective surgeries, surgeries that are scheduled in advance because they are non-urgent were postponed and some patients were prematurely released. Many fear that this will have lasting undesirable effects on the health care system.
The Canadian healthcare system relies on collaboration between the provincial and federal governments. Provincial governments are largely responsible for the provision of health care services, while the federal government oversees health care funding. The interplay between the two is what allows for the management and provision of healthcare for people in Canada. Many believe a lack of federal government involvement in public health can lead to the fragmentation of the health care system, and that certain issues require oversight from a national government. Infectious diseases are conceivably one of these important issues that require direct involvement and leadership from a national government.
COVID-19 has presented many issues across Canada through different facets but measures to control its spread have been comparatively practical. Canada’s response to COVID-19 was perhaps more effective than other countries because of its experience in dealing with infectious diseases. Rewind to 2003 and the SARS infectious disease outbreak in Toronto. During this time, Canada faced challenges integrating federal involvement in public health care. The federal response to SARS regarding travel advisories and other aspects was relatively delayed. This led the World Health Organization to publish its advisories, resulting in adverse effects on Toronto's economy. After learning from experience in 2003, Canada has improved the integration of federal governance into public health. Communication between the provincial and federal governments has increased in effectiveness and perhaps is what allowed a better response to managing COVID-19. In addition to the collaborative effort of the government, cooperative efforts have been widely seen in the medical field.
In an attempt to accelerate the development of a vaccine for COVID-19, researchers have engaged in the sharing of data and research. This collaboration allows for the transmission of important knowledge in the attempt to find solutions to public health issues. The sharing of data has also spread information regarding how to produce medical devices that are used to treat patients. This has worked to increase the rate of COVID-19 treatment and can give us ideas as to how similar health problems can be treated. Collaborations such as these in the medical field provide optimism and insight into how future health problems can be dealt with.
Though the pandemic has created many trials for the Canadian health care system, optimism lies ahead for how health crises are addressed in the future. International collaborations regarding how to best treat patients have allowed the transmission of important knowledge. Hospitals have learned how to allocate their resources to the best of their abilities and people continue to work together to help fight the disease. Further implications of the pandemic on the healthcare system also tell us what we can improve on. The importance of learning from mistakes and implementing novel ideas is an integral part of the development of a nation. Our experiences with the pandemic will undoubtedly guide us with potential future public health crises.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will be well ingrained in history. It has changed the way people live and how we interact as individuals and nations. Though challenging, the pandemic has allowed us to learn how to respond to dire situations. From its existence, the emergence of greater collaborative efforts and allocation of resources have risen. As we work through how to deal with its existence, we can continue to learn from our efforts in the past. Learning from experience, as seen through the SARS outbreak, has proven to be important to the mobilization of treating COVID in Canada. Going forward there is little doubt about whether what we have learned with COVID-19 will aid us in the future.