Healthcare Ideas and Trends at SXSW 2022

The South by Southwest (SXSW) conference had its first in-person/hybrid event since the pandemic began. The Healthcare industry covered engaging and illuminating topics and panel discussions, everything from experimental Psychedelics to what "post-pandemic world." We wanted to focus on more detailed aspects that reflect trends relatable to us. Their series about "the healthcare road ahead" focused on the future of healthcare and what could come next. Here are the following topics that caught our attention while attending the globally recognized conference:    

What the "She-cession" Will Teach Us About Hiring    

An excellent discussion moderated by the CMO of Indeed. The Covid recession has impacted women, which has affected healthcare and recruiting. The fallout continues as the recovery accelerates as people leaving the workforce are women and women of color even more. The presentation during this panel presented some facts:   

• 70% of women left a role because of a lack of support, flexible work, childcare, and healthcare support.   

• 89% of women say their partner was not as impacted as they were.   

• Women want to be paid more, be happy, have a meaning of belonging, work environment flexibility, and sympathetic managers.    

The panelists discuss what various organizations have done, including scheduling meetings at better times and being deliberate about keeping the parents navigating online learning—doing away with being on camera to monitor productivity. Related to healthcare, one panelist discussed the healthcare industry's challenges and how they overcame those issues. There is a tool one place used that serves job position recommendations to people based on their personality, which increased hiring women. A piece of advice was to ask questions about people being allowed to be their authentic selves at work since they spend so much time there.    

Beyond the pandemic, the issue needs to be resolved to improve the retention of women as leaders, CEOs, corporate, non-profit boards, and this gap will be closed. The major takeaway was it is not up to women alone to fix these issues, but organizations as a collective should, too.    

Hospital Data Transparency During Covid   

This talk might have been the most fascinating of everything we attended. The pipeline between collecting data, parsing it, and releasing it to journalists was an intricate journey. They reflected on the pandemic's beginning. Remember the ventilator crisis? People needed to know how many hospitals did not have data on those and bed counts. States with natural disasters were more likely to have a system like this. They had to organize the detailed information in a daunting task once information was submitted to HHS.   

Most governments at every level needed more organized hospital reporting and comprehensive data like staffing shortages, temporary beds, PPE supplies, etc. Allocating Remdesivir early in the pandemic would be based on people who recently got Covid and not people who had it for a while. Knowing real-time needs would increase or decrease shipping overall saved lives. The streamlined data elements automated it to change the response quickly and took a load off hospitals. Rural hospitals that only had a few cases could face privacy issues.   

They discussed the challenge of releasing data too quickly without confirming but too late for it not to be valuable and out of date. The COVID Tracking Project dashboard featured 70 volunteers taking data at the county level to create a national database for public knowledge. With this information, journalists would be able to inform the public about spikes at the state and local level and combat misinformation.    

The collection and releasing of information shouldn't end post-pandemic. It is vital to keep data active if there is another medical crisis, and it is better to be safe than sorry, as an ill-prepared system has reminded us. It benefits the public. With a system like this, people can track influenza data to be more prepared for flu seasons.   

The next crisis this panel worries about is retaining burned-out staff from a discouraging situation. For burnout, medical professionals need to document their thoughts and know if the system will not collapse of transparency with good journalism can take on misinformation. Most of it moved from HHS to CDC and HealthData.gov. One encouraging form of accountability was reporters comparing different data sources to find discrepancies, which would build trust for transparency.   

In conclusion, the panel suggested this brought several kinds of organizations together in health, policy, technology experts, emergency, and operations and provided needed information for the public. All in all, "demand your data" was a big takeaway.   

Equity: Mindset for Patients and Racial Disparities    

Patient equity is a complex and complicated topic in the healthcare industry. Building trust is the crucial first step for healthcare providers. One panel discussed making clinical trials more equitable to reflect accurately diverse communities. Being data-driven, they suggested making the information meaningful to all patients from effectiveness, adverse effects and needed access. Clinical trials initially consisted of only white men neglecting other people based on gender and race. Expanding the patient field helps healthcare workers provide culturally competent care and inherent biases in healthcare in treating diverse patients.   

Another point made was how to make people healthy in a non-medical way. Therapy beyond medicine and treatment is relevant to patients—partner with community leaders to bring awareness. Social determinacies drive health, and taking on that will lead to equity, both quality of life and length of life. Meet people where they are so they can give the information they need—asking questions about their home, dietary issues, sleeping, or access to transportation, elevated blood sugar. Reach out and educate the Black community about barriers and challenges: food stress trauma and access to insurance. A recent example of this was connecting with institutions in the Black community to help discuss Covid vaccines.   

Medical providers can think about solutions and how to make them sustainable for the community long term. Three key takeaways were bridging the gap for doctors, building trust with patients, and creating solutions catered to the patients. Make sure your team members reflect diversity for intersectionality since people trust others who look the most like them. Ask if the work you do builds bias. Removing colonizing mindset, addressing healthcare deserts with innovative capturing of data, and confronting medical misinformation all close the equity gap. Remember to prioritize healthcare structures in big and small things to continue the advancements.   

How Social Media Can Combat Health Issues  

Social media can be a vital tool in how people can improve healthcare and increase awareness of the public. Medical students are highlighting the ways that health care perpetuates disparities. Social media like TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter have become critical for medical professionals to enlighten the public about ongoing discrepancies. They are fighting against medical prejudice and the unique ways that the recent generation of increasing medical professionals oppose systemic differences in medicine.   

Medical equations, for example, that measure kidney function take race into account, making it more difficult for Black individuals to receive kidney transplants. Likewise, early-set Lyme disease rashes look different on darker skin than lighter skin. Black patients tend to get a later diagnosis for this reason. Students didn't learn to recognize this condition. Pulse oximeters had trouble measuring the breathing of specific patients.    

Gamers and influencers have used social media to be an example to followers and form habits that became routines. A gym stream session on Twitch forms a supportive community to ask questions and remove the stigma or embarrassment of working out in a public gym. Sustain mental harmony by playing games and connecting with their community. Likewise, always take the time to reset the moment to take time to unplug, especially before bed.    

HealthTech: AI Diagnosing Alzheimer's, MedTech, and VR Heart Health    

The SXSW conference likes to focus on the future and current trends. What could come next? As the global incidence of autoimmune diseases increases, VR (virtual reality) technology delivers innovative approaches to enhance assessments and deploy refined therapeutic resolutions relevant to our aging population. Medical breakthroughs could occur with virtual reality advancements. Current neuroscience research with breakthrough Virtual Reality technology will affect medicine, clinical care, and personal health and wellness. These inventions will be crucial to enhancing brain soundness and promoting senior care.    

For new devices, MedTech investors look at upcoming products and emerging technologies. If it works and proves it to customers and regulators, can they build it and protect it? Can you get it paid? Will it be profitable? Prove that the product can save money and increase efficiency? Successful companies focus on technologies that they know. They reach out to physicians to see if they would use the potential new product. Allow clinical trial companies to monitor on their own to save money during this process, so funding does not run out. Open the medical records and supporting de-centralized trials can cut costs, too.   

Scientists are on the verge of massive breakthroughs in medicine that would create a new paradigm for healthcare, potentially curing even the most challenging diseases by concentrating on our bodies, genes, and cells. For Alzheimer's Disease and other brain diseases, speech biomarkers are the near future of improved patient outcomes. Pioneering speech-based examinations for neurological & psychiatric disorders, creating authorized biomarkers to catch manifestation via natural language processing and AI. The technology revolutionizes unknown conditions from a clinical trial for Alzheimer's Disease to identifying detailed speech shifts in people. This future could be here before you know it.   

Since 1988, WSi has been recruiting medical professionals and following emerging trends to stay up to date in the health care industry. We do this to make sure we can find the best candidates for your organization. If you are looking for your next role, speak to a recruiter today.

The Benefits of Attending a Medical Conference

With society going back to being more regular, mass gatherings will become more common to form a sense of normalcy. People took conferences for granted, but attending was helpful for professional and personal development. Conferences are utilized to bring people concurrently with a shared interest and examine issues and concepts associated with a specific topic or industry. Events are an effective way to advance your career, and there is something unique about gathering for one. Conferences are not just a bunch of lectures and boring presentations. They are full of inspiring speakers and thought-provoking seminars with storytelling and video montages. As we achieved normalcy and continued deep reflection, health care professionals should take advantage of attending conferences and or at least events for a variety of reasons:

Learn the Latest Industry Trends     

Going to a medical conference is an opportunity to reflect on the challenging moments of your career, and healthcare workers have been through a lot in the previous two years. Attending a conference is a captivating way of keeping up to date with trends and what is next for the medical industry. You will not only understand what is happening in your industry by going to a meeting, but you can also actually conceive of new concepts and converse with fascinating thought leaders. Keynote speakers or panelists in breakout sessions go deep on select topics or hear about current research. Asking questions or proposing ideas with an expert on a panel is ideal for dialogue with an industry leader. Healthcare is rapidly evolving regardless of a pandemic, and professionals have a chance to learn about assorted topics, especially overlooked subjects, first.   

Get Out of Your Comfort Zone     

The value of experiences and making a human connection will be more substantial post-pandemic, and conferences are a way to partake in both. It has been a few years since most people attended significant events. This will be a suitable time to reassess life and more robust possibilities. Millennials are an enormous demographic in the workforce and statistically are more likely to want to travel than GenX. Individuals want to visit somewhere new, and it is an opportunity to break the redundancy of your work life while making it related to your career. Being in an unfamiliar situation can be challenging but learning something new or meeting new people is a rewarding experience. You are stretched as a person when you try something new.   

Professional and Personal Development     

Personalization of content is a recent conference trend that caters to people who go and not programmers or organizers who put on the event. Attendees want fluid schedules and agenda points with many possibilities to partake in or switch rooms to mix it up. Allowing people to select topics that inspire them creates more vibrancy and boosts engagement in the meeting space. Listening to detailed presentations by the experts in your field will make you view your profession from a different point of view and can change how you work. You can learn a lot when you listen to others. Healthcare professionals can choose what contemporary trends about the industry include such issues, including AI, patient equity, nursing techniques, and work-life balance, among others.   

An Opportunity for Networking     

Meeting people face-to-face is good for our mental health; they are also the most valuable spots to expand your professional network in your field. Ice breakers are a way to make meeting new people less awkward. Conference trade shows are a way to approach someone to see a product demo or talk about topics related to your industry and encourage curious minds. There are a lot of opportunities for health care professionals to discover what other people are doing. Creating a network of healthcare workers can be valuable to your career connection with other health specialists that you cannot typically do when working in a hectic unit. Sharing more profound ideas with other industry professionals will foster new thoughts, enable individuals, and advance professions.   

Attending a conference is a way to learn contemporary trends, adopt new skills, meet people, and think of the endless possibilities of advancements in the health care industry. To find a health care conference more in your field, check out your options here. Since 1988, WSi has been attending conferences and adapting to the needs of medical staffing. We have been working alongside health care professionals changing lives one person at a time. 

The Benefits of Virtual Care for HealthCare Institutions

With many things pivoting to virtual during the pandemic, telehealth is a trend that is not going away and can have a few benefits for patients and organizations. Before the pandemic, less than 2% of visits were remote. Today, it is close to 25%. With this tendency not going anywhere, here are some of the positives.

Convenience    

People crave the flexibility of working remotely during the pandemic, and it is a habit that will remain in the long term. You want to meet people where they are at as an organization. They will be willing to try virtual health screens, too. People have lives they are juggling and need to manage. Avoiding a trip and spending less time on their appointment will appeal to many individuals. This could benefit rural patients who lack access to quality health care, too. Logging on and off is easy. Just be prepared ahead of time.    

See More Patients     

Organizations can benefit from seeing more people during the day. Even if it can be physically and psychologically draining, back-to-back meetings online can be more efficient. A practice will be able to work with others. No more waiting for a physical space to be available to see someone. This could enhance productivity in your office. Visiting more patients can help those in need.     

Truly Beneficial  

Some have expressed concerns that this is medically beneficial and not a way to cut corners. According to the American Medical Association, around 70% of a patient's medical issues do not demand an in-person doctor visit and can be monitored virtually. People worried about telehealth appointments should be reassured that they are effective even if the doctor and patient are not in the same room. With fewer people needing to visit the hospital physically, healthcare professionals could focus on their work in the office and have a team function remotely to see patients.    

Technology Improves    

As virtual care makes technological progress, health care providers can lean into technology more over time. One thing that can be managed online today is observing hypertension and diabetes. It is anticipated that people may have their temperature by looking into a camera! Technology will continue to advance, and healthcare providers will complete more tasks and provide more patient care online.   

Has your organization considered the possibilities of a remote workforce? We have been hiring remote workers for many of our clients to meet this new demand. Since 1988, WSi has provided Colorado institutions with the best, most qualified staff. Speak to an account manager today. 

The Vital Importance of Medical Assistants

National Medical Assistants Week is this week (October 18 to 21) and today is National Medical Assistant Day. Now is a time to reflect on the Medical Assistants' contributions to the healthcare industry. There is a tremendous need for medical assistants and WSi strives to look for the best ones who will drive success at your organization. Here is what we consider:

The Needed Skills    

Medical assistants are on the frontlines reporting detailed facts. Medical knowledge is necessary to have the required certifications. Also, we look for someone detail-oriented and committed to precision for the person’s needs while recording patient information. Someone who can examine medical histories, measure, and record vital signs and understand basic information about current and previous conditions are things we look for.   

Can They Perform?  

We ask questions about the times they were on the job a wide variety of examples from preparing patients for exams, assisting the physician during procedures, collecting lab specimens, implementing necessary lab examinations, educating patients about medications and nutrition. What decisions did they make and why regarding organizational needs and patient care?  

The Best Perception  

Medical Assistants are the first people to see the patient and assess their medical needs. Do we want a specific candidate to be that individual to represent our clients? This is something we consider. Having the values of helping those in need, being empathetic, and being flexible are the best characteristics of a candidate. Describe treatment options to patients and answer their concerns.   

Be Persistent    

Medical organizations and hospitals are active places where people are on the go seeing various sick patients. What makes an individual be able to know when to move forward and be motivated during stressful times? We are looking for punctual and competent individuals who are ready from day one to perform to the best of their ability.   

At WSi, our recruiting specialists can manage the interview process for your organization. Since 1988, we have had the necessary experience to recognize top-quality medical assistants and other healthcare professionals. We are looking for those who have the technical knowledge and interpersonal skills required to improve patient well-being and allow our clients to succeed. Speak to an account manager today if you want to join us.