disrupting everything
from patient interac-
tions to how new
facilities are designed.
"I think we're going to
see a lot of changes
coming out of this
pandemic that will
alter how health care is delivered," says Lori Groven, MSPHN, RN,
CIC, an infection preventionist at TRIA Orthopaedic Center in
Bloomington, Minn. "Telehealth will be essential after the pandemic
in treating patients with conditions that prohibit in-person visits
such as a lack of transportation, mobility issues and infectious dis-
eases," says Ms. Groven. "The reduction in face-to-face encounters
with patients will work in our favor as we struggle to bring PPE lev-
els back up to par."
Ms. Groven also sees the pandemic eventually altering the physical
structures of outpatient facilities by reducing the amount of square
footage dedicated to patient care in favor of private areas to conduct
patient phone calls and video visits. COVID-19's effect will even play a
role in how new facilities are laid out. "I think more attention will go
toward ensuring new construction includes design elements needed
to contain novel pathogens that so many are missing right now —
such as the elusive airborne infection isolation room," says Ms.
Groven.
The silver lining
Before worrying about the future, however, surgical facility leaders
must get through the present. For those who work in infection con-
trol, the road ahead consists primarily of doing what they've always
1 0 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • M A Y 2 0 2 0
In the future, you'll see
organizations develop extended
policies based on what we're
experiencing right now.
— Lee Anne Blackwell,
BSN, RN, EMBA, CNOR, CAIP
