COVID-19 outbreak: implications on healthcare operations

Abstract

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic is considered a major disruptive event of this decade, raising unforeseen socio-economic implications worldwide. This novel virus has increased the influx of patients in hospitals, and healthcare organisations are facing unprecedented constraints in their operations to deal with increased demand and pressed capacity. Thus, this article evaluates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare systems' demand, resources and capacity and provides research directions.Design/methodology/approachThis is a viewpoint article and uses timely information on healthcare operations from both scholars and managers, published by diverse sources during the COVID-19 outbreak.FindingsThe authors discuss the focus on “flattening the curve of infection” as a measure to protect healthcare, delay the impact of increased demand and reorientate healthcare supply chain practices. Furthermore, the authors evaluate the role of lean practices on managing demand and capacity and improving quality across healthcare operations and supply chain. Finally, the authors suggest research directions on modern operational issues that emerged during this pandemic, such as discussions around the sustainability of lean post-pandemic, “just in time” practices, inventory trade-offs and lack of organisational responsiveness during untenable events.Originality/valueIn this article, the authors provide a contemporary assessment of the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare operations, underscoring main economic and operational elements that can be affected, such as unforeseen demand, resources and capacity shortage. Therefore, the authors assess that healthcare organisations, practitioners and governments have to anticipate operational and economic impacts and, ultimately, to reassess their plans to deal with such adverse events.

The Role of Coping in the Wellbeing and Work-Related Quality of Life of UK Health and Social Care Workers during COVID-19

“…The current study aimed to examine the relationship between coping strategies, wellbeing and the quality of working life in nurses, midwives, allied health professionals (AHPs), social care workers, and social workers who were working in health and social care in the UK during its first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (May–July 2020). It is important to examine these issues, because with an increasing influx of patients and decreasing staffing levels due to sickness, health and care systems worldwide have become stretched [ 32 ]. Staff sickness absence can be due to physical illness, but also due to stress, burnout, or other problems.…”

Operational improvement programs and humanitarian operations

“…Some of the findings reported by the selected twelve papers are applicable in addressing challenges faced by organizations when dealing with global pandemic like COVID19. There are hundreds of examples of successful collaboration between public, private and third sectors to respond to PPE challenges, ventilator challenges, and offer innovative solutions by repurposing their existing processes, products, service offerings, or supply chain (Leite, Lindsay, and Kumar 2020). There are several exemplar cases that could be used for organizational learning and prepare Humanitarian supply chain to deal with future relief operations.…”

“…The 'Global Humanitarian Response Plan COVID-19 0 was outlined by the United Nations (2020) to facilitate the actioning of a successful response implementation plan for a large-scale COVID19 pandemic. The COVID19 lockdown witnessed an accelerated level of collaboration between stakeholders for enabling the industry to adapt quickly for faster innovation within products, processes, and supply chain mostly through the repurposing of manufacturing or supply chain facilities to produce the much-needed products or deliver services (Ivanov and Dolgui 2020;Leite, Lindsay, and Kumar 2020). The response from all sectors during the global lockdown have highlighted the importance of operational improvement programs to prepare organizations to be responsive, flexible, resilient, and yet cost-efficient (Leite, Lindsay, and Kumar 2020).…”

“…The COVID19 lockdown witnessed an accelerated level of collaboration between stakeholders for enabling the industry to adapt quickly for faster innovation within products, processes, and supply chain mostly through the repurposing of manufacturing or supply chain facilities to produce the much-needed products or deliver services (Ivanov and Dolgui 2020;Leite, Lindsay, and Kumar 2020). The response from all sectors during the global lockdown have highlighted the importance of operational improvement programs to prepare organizations to be responsive, flexible, resilient, and yet cost-efficient (Leite, Lindsay, and Kumar 2020). However, this special issue is not about COVID19 but focussed on other humanitarian crisis from the past and how have organizations responded to minimize disruption using principles of operational improvement programs.…”

Market-Oriented Procurement Planning Leading to a Higher Service Level and Cost Optimization

“…COVID-19 had significant economic consequences globally [9]. This situation demonstrated the future risks and the current fragility of global healthcare infrastructure, such as a lack of medical resources and equipment [10]. The consequences have included production stops due to the lack of raw materials, while other producers had to decrease or shut off production because the finished products could not be shipped abroad.…”