• About Us
  • Get Insights to Your Inbox
Tuesday, June 3, 2025
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
Search in posts
Search in Author
Search Events
Filter by Categories
Action Learning
Artificial Intelligence in Business
Book Club
Books
BU Today
Business Challenges
Business Education
Business Functions
Business Policy & Markets
Corporate Strategy
Digital Business
Digital Business Institute
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Events
Expert Take
Feature
Finance & Accounting
Future of Business Education
Future of Work
Global Media
Harvard Business Review
Health, Biopharma, & Health-Tech
Human Resources Policy Institute
Innovation
Insights Live
Institute for Sustainable Energy
Journals
Language of Business
Leadership & Management
Local Media
Marketing
Media Mention
Multimedia
National Media
Newsletter Spotlight
Op-Ed
Operations
Opinion
Our Insights
Partners in Business Ethics
Podcast
Publications
Research Institutes
Risk
ScienceDirect
Silicon Valley Bank
Sloan Management Review
Social Impact
Special Series
Susilo Institute for Ethics in the Global Economy
Technology
The Brink
Thinkers50@BUQuestrom: Passion & Purpose
Videos
Insights@Questrom
  • Our Insights
    • All
    • Business Challenges
    • Business Education
    • Business Functions
    Boston dockworkers among thousands on strike nationwide 

    High tariffs, immigration crackdown, funding cuts: BU professor warns of ‘Trump Trifecta’ 

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Madeleine Dean demand food and beverage CEOs put a stop to ‘shrinkflation’ 

    Mass. leaders worried for seniors and kids as Trump agenda bill clears House 

    What Is ‘Big Law?’ 

    Stop Making Cents: US Mint Moves Forward With Plans to Kill the Penny 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Could the GPT Store Turn ChatGPT into a Platform Powerhouse? 

    The Right Amount of Cards, Cash and ID to Carry in Your Wallet

    The ‘Best and Final’ Job Offer Usually Isn’t Final. How You Can Negotiate 

    From Hollywood to the Hardware Store: The Real-World Impact of a 100% Tariff 

    From Hollywood to the Hardware Store: The Real-World Impact of a 100% Tariff 

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

  • Videos & Podcast
    • All
    • Podcast
    • Videos
    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Tariffs and Their Economic Impact

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Navigating Internet Privacy: Unpacking Cookies, Dark Patterns, and Future Data Protection Challenges (2)

    Beyond Prototypes: Rethinking Innovation in Complex Ecosystems with Prof. Douglas Hannah

    Beyond Prototypes: Rethinking Innovation in Complex Ecosystems with Prof. Douglas Hannah

    Is Business Broken? Season 2 out now! 

    Is Business Broken? Season 2 out now! 

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Redefining Retirement: Navigating Emotional and Social Transitions with Insightful Strategies

    Life After Cookies: Who Uses Google’s Privacy Sandbox? – Garrett Johnson

    Life After Cookies: Who Uses Google’s Privacy Sandbox? – Garrett Johnson

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Real Estate Ripples from a Landmark Settlement

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    The Hidden Wisdom of Cultural Pushback

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Fusion Strategy: Navigating the Industrial Evolution

  • Insights Events
    • Events
    • Insights Live
    • Questrom Institute Events
  • In the Media
    • All
    • BU Today
    • Global Media
    • Local Media
    • National Media
    • Op-Ed
    • The Brink
    Boston dockworkers among thousands on strike nationwide 

    High tariffs, immigration crackdown, funding cuts: BU professor warns of ‘Trump Trifecta’ 

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Madeleine Dean demand food and beverage CEOs put a stop to ‘shrinkflation’ 

    Mass. leaders worried for seniors and kids as Trump agenda bill clears House 

    What Is ‘Big Law?’ 

    Stop Making Cents: US Mint Moves Forward With Plans to Kill the Penny 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Could the GPT Store Turn ChatGPT into a Platform Powerhouse? 

    The Right Amount of Cards, Cash and ID to Carry in Your Wallet

    The ‘Best and Final’ Job Offer Usually Isn’t Final. How You Can Negotiate 

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

    In a ‘work-from-anywhere’ world, where are people working?

    79,000 lost jobs. $13 billion in GDP gone. Study tallies potential hit to Mass. from Trump’s ‘economic attack.’

    The Hidden Risk of Getting Paid in Stock Options 

    Trump Administration Cancels Scores of Grants to Study Online Misinformation 

  • Publications
    • All
    • Books
    • Harvard Business Review
    • Journals
    • Sloan Management Review
    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Could the GPT Store Turn ChatGPT into a Platform Powerhouse? 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    How to Monetize Volunteer-Driven Platforms 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Leading Global Teams Effectively 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Research: When Prototypes Don’t Yield Useful Insights 

    Transforming Products into Platforms: Unearthing New Avenues for Business Innovation

    Transforming Products into Platforms: Unearthing New Avenues for Business Innovation

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    We’re Still Lonely at Work

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    17 Team-Building Activities for In-Person, Remote, and Hybrid Teams

    3 Ways to Support Employees with Bipolar Disorder

    3 Ways to Support Employees with Bipolar Disorder

    Will That Marketplace Succeed?

    Will That Marketplace Succeed?

  • Questrom Book Club
Insights@Questrom
  • Our Insights
    • All
    • Business Challenges
    • Business Education
    • Business Functions
    Boston dockworkers among thousands on strike nationwide 

    High tariffs, immigration crackdown, funding cuts: BU professor warns of ‘Trump Trifecta’ 

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Madeleine Dean demand food and beverage CEOs put a stop to ‘shrinkflation’ 

    Mass. leaders worried for seniors and kids as Trump agenda bill clears House 

    What Is ‘Big Law?’ 

    Stop Making Cents: US Mint Moves Forward With Plans to Kill the Penny 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Could the GPT Store Turn ChatGPT into a Platform Powerhouse? 

    The Right Amount of Cards, Cash and ID to Carry in Your Wallet

    The ‘Best and Final’ Job Offer Usually Isn’t Final. How You Can Negotiate 

    From Hollywood to the Hardware Store: The Real-World Impact of a 100% Tariff 

    From Hollywood to the Hardware Store: The Real-World Impact of a 100% Tariff 

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

  • Videos & Podcast
    • All
    • Podcast
    • Videos
    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Tariffs and Their Economic Impact

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Navigating Internet Privacy: Unpacking Cookies, Dark Patterns, and Future Data Protection Challenges (2)

    Beyond Prototypes: Rethinking Innovation in Complex Ecosystems with Prof. Douglas Hannah

    Beyond Prototypes: Rethinking Innovation in Complex Ecosystems with Prof. Douglas Hannah

    Is Business Broken? Season 2 out now! 

    Is Business Broken? Season 2 out now! 

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Redefining Retirement: Navigating Emotional and Social Transitions with Insightful Strategies

    Life After Cookies: Who Uses Google’s Privacy Sandbox? – Garrett Johnson

    Life After Cookies: Who Uses Google’s Privacy Sandbox? – Garrett Johnson

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Real Estate Ripples from a Landmark Settlement

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    The Hidden Wisdom of Cultural Pushback

    S1:E1 CVS Paying the “Pink Tax” on Certain Products and the Evolution of the Electric Vehicle Industry

    Fusion Strategy: Navigating the Industrial Evolution

  • Insights Events
    • Events
    • Insights Live
    • Questrom Institute Events
  • In the Media
    • All
    • BU Today
    • Global Media
    • Local Media
    • National Media
    • Op-Ed
    • The Brink
    Boston dockworkers among thousands on strike nationwide 

    High tariffs, immigration crackdown, funding cuts: BU professor warns of ‘Trump Trifecta’ 

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Madeleine Dean demand food and beverage CEOs put a stop to ‘shrinkflation’ 

    Mass. leaders worried for seniors and kids as Trump agenda bill clears House 

    What Is ‘Big Law?’ 

    Stop Making Cents: US Mint Moves Forward With Plans to Kill the Penny 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How to Attract (and Keep!) the Best Gen Z Employees 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Could the GPT Store Turn ChatGPT into a Platform Powerhouse? 

    The Right Amount of Cards, Cash and ID to Carry in Your Wallet

    The ‘Best and Final’ Job Offer Usually Isn’t Final. How You Can Negotiate 

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

    Bank Failures Show Us What Not to Do with Our Own Finances

    In a ‘work-from-anywhere’ world, where are people working?

    79,000 lost jobs. $13 billion in GDP gone. Study tallies potential hit to Mass. from Trump’s ‘economic attack.’

    The Hidden Risk of Getting Paid in Stock Options 

    Trump Administration Cancels Scores of Grants to Study Online Misinformation 

  • Publications
    • All
    • Books
    • Harvard Business Review
    • Journals
    • Sloan Management Review
    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Could the GPT Store Turn ChatGPT into a Platform Powerhouse? 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    How to Monetize Volunteer-Driven Platforms 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Leading Global Teams Effectively 

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    Research: When Prototypes Don’t Yield Useful Insights 

    Transforming Products into Platforms: Unearthing New Avenues for Business Innovation

    Transforming Products into Platforms: Unearthing New Avenues for Business Innovation

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    We’re Still Lonely at Work

    How Retailers Can Capitalize on the “Refund Effect”

    17 Team-Building Activities for In-Person, Remote, and Hybrid Teams

    3 Ways to Support Employees with Bipolar Disorder

    3 Ways to Support Employees with Bipolar Disorder

    Will That Marketplace Succeed?

    Will That Marketplace Succeed?

  • Questrom Book Club
Insights@Questrom
Home Our Insights Business Challenges Health, Biopharma, & Health-Tech

Five Big Ideas For Reimagining Healthcare Post-Coronavirus

byInsights Editorial Team
November 10, 2020
in Health, Biopharma, & Health-Tech
17
0
Five Big Ideas For Reimagining Healthcare Post-Coronavirus
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn

Jonathan Woodson and Anita Tucker on improving healthcare coverage, fixing supply issues, and tracking future outbreaks.

It didn’t take long for the COVID-19 pandemic to reveal systemic flaws in the American healthcare system. When hospital admissions first began climbing at alarming rates, the system was ill-prepared to manage uneven surges in demand for services, to quickly distribute personal protective equipment to front-line medical staff, or even to manage supplies of ventilators.

But the pandemic has also presented an opportunity, says Jonathan Woodson, director of the Questrom-based Institute for Health System Innovation & Policy: to reshape healthcare in the United States so it works for everyone—in good times and in bad.

“Crises force people to focus on priorities,” says Woodson, who is also the Larz Anderson Professor in Management, “but more importantly, crises force people to think differently and be innovative.”

Woodson and Anita Tucker, a professor of operations and technology management who has studied hospital processes, share five ideas that could help strengthen the healthcare system in the long run.

1. COVER EVERYONE

Even before COVID-19 threw the economy into a deep fall, some 28 million Americans lacked health insurance. With millions now out of work—and stripped of their employer-based health insurance—that number is likely to rise. The pandemic has laid bare disparities among those who aren’t covered, and the need to provide care whether or not people have the ability to pay, says Woodson. He expects discussions about expanding health insurance coverage will pick up when the crisis subsides: Americans have consistently signaled they are more likely to support than oppose a national health insurance plan, according to a tracking poll started in June 2017 by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

“Coming out of this, there should be a renewed effort to make sure that we have everyone insured,” says Woodson, who has long advocated the benefits of a single-payer system or nonprofit private insurance market. “On the march to universal insurance, we’re going to see the promotion of a public option to try and provide health insurance at a reasonable cost to that portion of the population that has been historically either uninsured or underinsured.”

2. BUILD NATIONAL SUPPLY CHAINS

As soon as COVID cases started to rise, hospitals struggled to obtain masks and other protective gear. By April, Time was reporting that healthcare workers were “begging for thermometers, body bags, and gowns.” It portrayed a sourcing system that was more black market than slick operation: “States are competing against the federal government for the same small stream of supplies.” Both Tucker and Woodson say the key to managing future surges in demand is to coordinate the supplies across a large area—statewide or nationally. To make that happen, they say, we’d need to have the systems in place to show what is available where and when in the supply chains for everything from personal protective equipment (PPE) to prescription medicines.

“Organizations have done this on their own, so that if there is a hospital in one part of the state that isn’t using a ventilator, they can send it to a hospital that has a patient in need,” Tucker says. But this only goes so far.

Tucker says what’s needed is scale. An example: An online portal to track the availability of assets and supplies across the nation. That way, healthcare centers can use supply chain techniques to assess their total inventories, and determine how to most efficiently distribute available supplies to where they are needed.

“Right now, every hospital and hospital system sort of operates as their own silo,” Woodson says. “That’s what enhanced information systems could do for us—redefining how, as a nation, we could have a more integrated healthcare system.”

3. REFORM MEDICAL EDUCATION

States hardest hit by the virus weren’t just calling for equipment, they needed staff, too. “If you’re a health professional anywhere in America, Michigan needs you,” pleaded Governor Gretchen Whitmer in March. Retired doctors and nurses were encouraged to return to work. Medical schools, including BU, moved up their graduation ceremonies so their students could care for coronavirus patients.

Woodson says the crisis highlights an opportunity to reshape medical education to ensure more medical professionals, especially doctors, have a broader set of skills so they can pivot to provide general healthcare services when needed.

Medical students, he says, should be put in more hands-on situations in which they are responsible for patients’ care. “We should come out of this crisis with a new respect for the fact that these are bright, capable people who, at their earliest opportunity, should be a part of the medical team that provides care, under supervision, rather than just being observers,” he says.

Other kinds of healthcare training could also use reform, says Woodson, who served from 2010 to 2016 as assistant secretary of defense for health affairs at the US Department of Defense. “When I trained military folks, we took high school graduates and turned them into combat medics who performed magnificently on the battlefield.”

4. USE DATA

The problems resulting from the fragmented nature of the US healthcare system predate the coronavirus pandemic. Woodson says analytics technology—timely data made meaningful by automated analysis and artificial intelligence—could improve care and help better coordinate decisions among service providers and specialists.

Take detecting a disease—like COVID-19—that presents as an infectious agent with potential consequences for large populations. Woodson envisions an automated system that uses smartphones to collect data, which feed into AI-enabled applications that detect emerging patterns of disease over wide geographies. The smartphones act as sensors in what he calls “an Internet of Medical Things,” a network to sense and respond to disease.

“The use of artificial intelligence, the use of smartphones in tracking outbreaks are all part of how we could enhance our capability to detect the emergence of infectious diseases,” he says.

5. EMBRACE TELEMEDICINE

The social distancing rules established during the pandemic have prevented people from visiting medical offices for routine visits. Around the country, this has led to a flood of medical appointments via video conference. It’s forced many health insurers, including Medicare, to reverse their restrictions on telehealth appointments.

Woodson and Tucker think both patients and the healthcare system will benefit if the change sticks. When it comes to managing chronic conditions like kidney disease or diabetes, says Woodson, patients can get more timely support and providers can “monitor what’s happening in their homes.” Tucker points to reduced travel times, too: a patient would potentially miss less time from work to go to the doctor for a checkup.

Telehealth also has the potential to reduce a problem that’s long vexed providers: no-shows. A global study published in 2018 found that average no-show rates for medical appointments in North America was 23.5 percent, with more frequent absences recorded by patients who were younger, poorer, lived far away from a clinic, or lacked health insurance.

“The fact that people are showing up to telemedicine appointments, that there could be a higher percentage, is a huge benefit for providers,” Tucker says.

Tags: Anita TuckerCOVID-19Jonathan WoodsonQuestrom Extra
Insights Editorial Team

Insights Editorial Team

Related Insights

An economist explains why the U.S. space economy’s output is shrinking 
Finance & Accounting

Fireworks sales in the U.S. are down due to the pandemic and inflation

July 3, 2024
Local Media

[Omaha World-Herald] Pandemic Forced Nebraskans to Innovate

June 12, 2022
Companies Consider Risks and Rewards Weighing in On Political Issues
Media Mention

[The National Desk] DOJ Adds to List of Pending Prosecutions for COVID Fraud

May 25, 2022
Media Mention

[The Atlantic] America Created Its Own Booster Problems

April 12, 2022
[Deutsche Welle] The Scientific Innovation Sparked by the Pandemic
Media Mention

[Deutsche Welle] The Scientific Innovation Sparked by the Pandemic

March 31, 2022
How Communities are Saving Lives with Clever Ideas and Cleaner Air
Business Challenges

How Communities are Saving Lives with Clever Ideas and Cleaner Air

March 24, 2022

Upcoming Events

June 2025
Jun 07 2025

Mayor WU, BU Questrom Team Up to Host Civic Summit 2025

Boston University Questrom School of Business
No event found!

Get Our Insights Newsletter

Get Insights straight to your inbox by signing up now.

    Popular Insights

    • I’m a business professor who asked dozens of former students how they define success. Here are their lessons for today’s grads

      I’m a business professor who asked dozens of former students how they define success. Here are their lessons for today’s grads

      11 shares
      Share 4 Tweet 3
    • Why did Hertz just announce it was selling EVs and recording a massive loss? 

      69 shares
      Share 28 Tweet 17
    • Massachusetts Economy at Risk from Trump Administration Policies  

      18 shares
      Share 7 Tweet 5
    • Poets&Quants Names Two Questrom Students 2025 Best & Brightest MBAs

      7 shares
      Share 3 Tweet 2
    • How much profit do fireworks stands make?

      307 shares
      Share 123 Tweet 77

    Boston University Questrom School of Business
    595 Commonwealth Avenue
    Boston, MA 02215

    Follow Us

    Newsletter

    © 2023 Trustees of Boston University

    • About Us
    • Digital Business Institute
    • Human Resource Policy Institute
    • Susilo Institute for Ethics in the Global Economy

    Welcome Back!

    Sign In with Linked In
    OR

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password?

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In

    Add New Playlist

    Generic selectors
    Exact matches only
    Search in title
    Search in content
    Post Type Selectors
    Search in posts
    Search in Author
    Search Events
    Filter by Categories
    Action Learning
    Artificial Intelligence in Business
    Book Club
    Books
    BU Today
    Business Challenges
    Business Education
    Business Functions
    Business Policy & Markets
    Corporate Strategy
    Digital Business
    Digital Business Institute
    Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
    Entrepreneurship & Innovation
    Events
    Expert Take
    Feature
    Finance & Accounting
    Future of Business Education
    Future of Work
    Global Media
    Harvard Business Review
    Health, Biopharma, & Health-Tech
    Human Resources Policy Institute
    Innovation
    Insights Live
    Institute for Sustainable Energy
    Journals
    Language of Business
    Leadership & Management
    Local Media
    Marketing
    Media Mention
    Multimedia
    National Media
    Newsletter Spotlight
    Op-Ed
    Operations
    Opinion
    Our Insights
    Partners in Business Ethics
    Podcast
    Publications
    Research Institutes
    Risk
    ScienceDirect
    Silicon Valley Bank
    Sloan Management Review
    Social Impact
    Special Series
    Susilo Institute for Ethics in the Global Economy
    Technology
    The Brink
    Thinkers50@BUQuestrom: Passion & Purpose
    Videos
    • Business Challenges
      • Business Policy & Markets
      • Digital Business
      • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
      • Entrepreneurship & Innovation
      • Future of Work
      • Health, Biopharma, & Health-Tech
      • Risk
      • Social Impact
    • Business Functions
      • Corporate Strategy
      • Finance & Accounting
      • Innovation
      • Leadership & Management
      • Marketing
      • Operations
      • Technology
    • Publications
      • Journals
      • Harvard Business Review
      • Sloan Management Review
    • Insights Events
      • All Events
      • Insights Live
      • Questrom Institute Events
    • Videos & Podcast
      • Videos
      • Insights@Questrom Podcast
      • Podcast
    • Voices in the Media
    • Our Experts

    © 2023 Trustees of Boston University

    -
    00:00
    00:00

    Queue

    Update Required Flash plugin
    -
    00:00
    00:00