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Amar answered on
Oct 08 2021
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Running Header: Post-COVID-19 Health System Reform in Australia: Policy Position Report
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Post-COVID-19 Health System Reform in Australia: Policy Position Report
Post-COVID-19 Health System Reform in Australia: Policy Position Report
Table of Contents
PART A – Background Analysis 3
Introduction 3
Analysis & Discussion 4
Conclusion 10
PART B – Policy Position 11
Summary 11
Background 12
Recommendations 13
Conclusion 16
References 17
PART A – Background Analysis
Introduction
The year 2020 till now can be noted to be consumed with global scale pandemic due to COVID-19 as well as its impacts of devastating nature over the systems of healthcare in Australia as well as globally. Unlike the health systems across United States, Italy, and other nations, The Australian system has not been stress tested from this pandemic (van Barneveld et al., 2020; Pennington & Stanford, 2020; Mazzucato & Kattel, 2020). However, it shall be crucial for noting that prudent and effective form of systems / policies focussed on public health shall aid in saving lives, scalable healthcare capacities as well as continue in providing care for most vulnerable of the Australians. While no system for public health can be 100% perfect, the present system in Australia holds certain critical attributes which shall make it to be robust system at a global level, and yet it is exposed to wide ranging challenges. This report shall explore the various impacts, implications and learnings from COVID-19 pandemic in the context of reforming the Australia’s health system over long term (van Barneveld et al., 2020; Pennington & Stanford, 2020; Mazzucato & Kattel, 2020).
The key implications that are discussed in this analysis report include the following: [1] poor integration, that is, in the macro level context, federal / state funding usually lead to competing as well as disconnected form of health systems. To take an example, a
itrary splitting in-between funding for hospitals and general practice. In the level of states, for example one can see in Victoria that governance of hospitals has largely been devolved for local-level health services, focussed on centralised form of planning, integration in IT infrastructure as well as bulk purchasing based procurement decisions (van Barneveld et al., 2020; Pennington & Stanford, 2020; Mazzucato & Kattel, 2020). In tertiary sector contexts, one can note specialties turning to be ever-more siloed increasingly, with highly and niche specialised clinicians who in a frequent manner work on an isolated manner from one other, instead of one other, resulting in disjointed form of care, [2] weighting of the services focussed on treating acute illness instead of promoting wellness / prevention. There has been significant set of attempts for prioritising prevention across Australia and yet actual reality has been that the disproportionate portion in health funding has been going towards acute care as well as favouring procedurals approaches instead of non-procedural approaches (van Barneveld et al., 2020; Pennington & Stanford, 2020; Mazzucato & Kattel, 2020). Funding shall often get targeted on shorter term projects instead of investment in longer-term reforms at structural level for delivering healthcare, and [3] significant inefficiency as well as wastage to utilise healthcare resources within healthcare system of Australia (van Barneveld et al., 2020; Pennington & Stanford, 2020; Mazzucato & Kattel, 2020).
Analysis & Discussion
Reforms in health systems can usually be frustrating and arduous processes having bureaucrats who are risk-averse, vested interests as well as general form of inertia leading to the prevention of rapid changes, even while changes shall appear to be sensible eminently (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020). The remarkable form of characteristic with respect to the response focussed on COVID-19 have been sheer pace in reforms, having significant changes like that of expansion in tele-health services, creating COVID-19 focussed clinical services inside existing hospitals, as well as unprecedented levels in co-operation amongst public and private hospitals, as well as between federal and state governments. Innovation can be noted to be flourishing, right from use of ventilation hoods, 3D printed medical equipment for development of vaccine, etc. (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020).
In this context, it shall be essential at present for determining the ways in which one can ca
y forward the stated form of innovative / positive attitudes on health reforms while the country emerges from this acute crisis. In actual, prevailing paradigms which entail availing of ethics and grants approval with respect to research projects shall usually stifle innovation (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020). This mandates the need to learn ways for capitalising over positive forms of consequences that are unintended during the pandemic for facilitating and reward innovation. One of the promising and new development in this regard concerns Australian Academy for Science Rapid Research Information Forum (“RRIF”) that aids in facilitating policy-focussed and rapid information sharing concerning COVID-19 in the domain of Australian research / innovation (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020).
It has to be noted that unfortunately, inflexibility gets integrated within varied set of structures concerning health system, exace
ated on account of the Australian system focussed on devolved governance, specialist / clinical siloing as well as distinct lines in accountability concerning the private as well as public health systems, in addition to the segregated forms of hospital systems and primary care (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020). The stated inflexibility can be noted to be evident in the span of decades, where reforms have been held up on account of vested interests as well as usually representing culture with hostility in-between health bureaucracy and clinicians, as well as in-between clinicians from varied craft groups. The same has hampered the capacity of government for co-ordinating agile and system-wide responses (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020). In actual, as it has been observed over the course of this on-going crisis, pandemic responses need coordinated form of response. All of the individual hospitals shall be required in playing their respective roles forming part of the larger / wider plan, in the manner of public, to take an example, by way of paving way for electronic forms of contact tracing by way of applications like “CovidSafe”, even having significant levels of community reservations with respect to privacy (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020).
The health system in Australia can be noted of having demonstrated overall flexibility with respect to rapid form of transitioning in the outpatient clinics of public hospitals to that of tele-health frameworks, yet much of the work are yet to be undertaken within this domain (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020). It is expected that there is a need in that lasting legacy from this crisis shall be to inculcate flexibility for utilising suitable communication technologies in undertaking various responses for COVID-19 in a manner that is business as usual. In case of any crises, resources shall be highly precious as compared to normal times, and concerned health leaders have complete responsibility for prioritising the resource stewardship. In this context, it is notable that laissez-faire / free market approach focussed on using the resources shall become ineffective and even dangerous during pandemic period while potential shortages shall loom with respect to personal protective equipment (“PPE”), capacities for ICU as well as laboratory / testing capabilities. With various nations scrambling for securing sufficient equipment, cu
ent COVID-19 pandemic is representing to be salient reminder in that the health resources shall indeed be finite, which shall be applicable for wealthier nations as well (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020).
It shall be true in stating that even prior to this pandemic, there has been calls for pursuing reduction with respect to environmental footprints from the provision of healthcare. In the level of day-to-day operations, questions had actually been raised with respect to the proliferation concerning single-use aspects, with increased levels of cost as well as significant levels of environmental footprints in comparison to the reusable items (Fernandez-Portillo et al., 2020; Sarkodie & Owusu, 2020; Halcomb et al., 2020). In same instance, programs like that of “Evolve & Choosing Wisely” has been seeking out both consumers as well as clinicians for being highly cognisant over not just any burgeoning waste across healthcare, but in addition potential...