Springfield Business Journal_2021-03-01

SPRINGFIELD BUSINESS JOURNAL · 13 MARCH 1-7, 2021 HEALTH CARE Physical, virtual infrastructure investments needed for better care At a recent event sponsored by the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, I was given the opportunity to address local and state political leaders regarding the importance of ongoing investment in infrastructure in Springfield. You may be wondering why someone who works in health care is concerned with the infra- structure of our community. Good ques- tion.  Discussions of infrastructure often include investments in roads, bridges, public transportation and similar ini- tiatives that serve to support the needs of the public. Those same invest- ments have a significant impact on the health and well-being of a community. However, in addition to those areas, any discussion about infrastructure today must include digital resources and the on- going importance of virtual connectivity in our lives. As with good physical trans- portation, the need for virtual access is increasingly important every day in health care.   Health care providers always have been concerned with getting patients to the right location of care at the right time. That has never been more true than it is today, and ongoing investment in physical and virtual infrastructure is critical to ensur- ing patients have access to the health care services they need. This allows for better management of both acute and chronic conditions. Access to the appropriate lev- el of care at the right time can prevent us from having to unnecessarily seek high- er levels of care and incur much higher costs, and the physical infrastructure of our city plays a key role in that access. Easy access to an urgent care facility, for in- stance, often can be the difference between getting care in an appropriate setting or having to seek out that care at an emergen- cy room. When we think about infrastructure, public transportation often comes to mind. It would be great to have a light rail or similar type of public transportation that one could hop on and get dropped off right in front of Hammons Field, one of our local breweries and restaurants or any number of businesses downtown or on Commer- cial Street where parking can sometimes be challenging. That same light rail could easily pass very near to several health care providers and resources. While such public transportation investments would help the people of Springfield with access to health care, and no doubt benefit local business, it isn’t the only type of infrastructure we need. One recent development in the manage- ment of health is virtual care. Health care providers in Springfield utilize virtual care in new and different ways almost daily. For example: In our initial response to the COVID-19 virus, CoxHealth went from seeing approximately 900 virtual patients on demand every month, to seeing that same number every couple of days. Patients have become accustomed to utilizing tech- nology for many needs in life. Another very important service impact- ed by the advent of virtual care is mental health. For some time now, access to men- tal health services in Springfield, as with other areas of the country, has been noth- ing if not challenging. The ongoing push by local providers to increase the quantity and quality of mental health services provided in a virtual setting has had a significant im- pact on the availability of that care in our community. Most of the physicians I know point to this as a game-changer in mental health care available to their patients. Virtual care also is allowing for the extension of specialty care to ru- ral areas of southwest Missouri. This includes virtual intensive care units, stroke care and other forms of highly spe- cialized medical care that simply wasn’t available locally prior to the advent of vir- tual care technologies.  These virtual platforms are increasing demands on the information backbone in the Ozarks. Recent investments by local leadership in gigabit technology are wel- come and must continue as imaging and information demands increase. Virtual care solutions do have their limitations. We haven’t quite figured out how to give flu shots or take out some- one’s gallbladder over telemedicine, yet. When we do, it will require bandwidth capacity like we have never seen be- fore. Until then, we need a good balance of investment in physical and virtual means of creating access to health care and to lo- cal businesses.  Infrastructure is a perennial prior- ity for state and local government. It isn’t new or often exciting, but it is critical to the health and well-being of the business community and the indi- viduals who live, work and play here. Keep pressing your state and local repre- sentatives to invest in the infrastructure of Springfield – both the physical and the virtual. David Raney is the vice president of network services at CoxHealth and vice chair of public affairs for the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce. He can be reached at david.raney@ coxhealth.com. INDUSTRY INSIGHT David Raney Funding the Future PRODUCED BY Check out their 90 Ideas online at SBJ.net/90Ideas. Watch and listen to them present what inspired their ideas and then listen to a deep-dive podcast with each speaker ... a live for you at SBJ.net/90Ideas! PRESENTED BY SBJ.net/90Ideas Dr. Shelly Farnan Burrell Behavioral Health Matt Gifford St. Louis Cardinals Jann Holland CoxHealth Lexi Jackson graduate student & TED Talk speaker Julia King Alderman Ward III for Branson, MO Brad Noble Art of Everyone in New York City Charlie Rosenbury Self Interactive Tim Stack SRC Holdings Corporation Janet Susdorf Brainpower For Hire