4 ms·

How many people will go undiagnosed with heart disease or cancer because hospitals are only seeing emergencies/COVID? Shutting things down has a real and measur

How many people will go undiagnosed with heart disease or cancer because hospitals are only seeing emergencies/COVID? Shutting things down has a real and measurable cost and it is going to be massive in terms of lives lost. We didn't all go to work every day for the hell of it.

ntsplnkv2 6y ago
How many people already went undiagnosed because they couldn't afford their copays or insurance because of the healthcare system in the US? Now all of a sudden we're reopening the economy for "compassion?"
triceratops 6y ago
> How many people will go undiagnosed with heart disease or cancer because hospitals are only seeing emergencies/COVID? Opening up the economy and letting the virus spread is supposed to help with this? How, exactly?
- downerending 6y ago
  For example, people who should get screened will be able to get screened and treated, and presumably lives will be saved. The UK paper I mentioned thought it would be a lot of people. (no link, but it surfaced recently, so you can probably find it)
  - triceratops 6y ago
    > people who should get screened will be able to get screened and treated Will they? If the number of virus patients grows beyond the ability of the medical system to absorb, will there be any capacity?
    - downerending 6y ago
      That was a concern early on. Now we have a sub-optimal excess of empty hospital beds, medical staff are being furloughed, and patients that should be seen are not. Clearly we'll need to adapt, higher or lower, watching things in real time. (in USA)
      - triceratops 6y ago
        > medical staff are being furloughed Some lazy Googling told me that mostly non medical hospital and healthcare workers are being laid off. And dentists and other medical practices are shedding medical staff. Dentists have been forced to close in California, except for emergency procedures. But doctor offices and practices are allowed to stay open, and people are free to go in for checkups and visits. Heck my local vet's office is open and I took my pet in for a non-emergency (i.e. concerning but not immediately life-threatening) checkup. People have been avoiding the doc's office for non-urgent stuff out of caution and fear, not because it's forbidden.
        downerending 6y ago
        I can't add much. My wife does significant but non-urgent care and is not working. My dentist is not doing cleanings and checkups. I do have a couple of friends with broken bones that got them set. Personally, I wouldn't be caught dead in an ER unless there were simply no alternative. > People have been avoiding the doc's office for non-urgent stuff out of caution and fear, not because it's forbidden. I'm sure it's both. Either way, it matters. Hypothetically, if we can hit herd immunity fast, that fear would probably diminish quickly. I don't know if that's a good plan or not, but certainly it needs to be considered.

ntsplnkv2 6y ago

How many people already went undiagnosed because they couldn't afford their copays or insurance because of the healthcare system in the US? Now all of a sudden we're reopening the economy for "compassion?"

triceratops 6y ago

> How many people will go undiagnosed with heart disease or cancer because hospitals are only seeing emergencies/COVID? Opening up the economy and letting the virus spread is supposed to help with this? How, exactly?

downerending 6y ago
For example, people who should get screened will be able to get screened and treated, and presumably lives will be saved. The UK paper I mentioned thought it would be a lot of people. (no link, but it surfaced recently, so you can probably find it)
- triceratops 6y ago
  > people who should get screened will be able to get screened and treated Will they? If the number of virus patients grows beyond the ability of the medical system to absorb, will there be any capacity?
  - downerending 6y ago
    That was a concern early on. Now we have a sub-optimal excess of empty hospital beds, medical staff are being furloughed, and patients that should be seen are not. Clearly we'll need to adapt, higher or lower, watching things in real time. (in USA)
    - triceratops 6y ago
      > medical staff are being furloughed Some lazy Googling told me that mostly non medical hospital and healthcare workers are being laid off. And dentists and other medical practices are shedding medical staff. Dentists have been forced to close in California, except for emergency procedures. But doctor offices and practices are allowed to stay open, and people are free to go in for checkups and visits. Heck my local vet's office is open and I took my pet in for a non-emergency (i.e. concerning but not immediately life-threatening) checkup. People have been avoiding the doc's office for non-urgent stuff out of caution and fear, not because it's forbidden.
      - downerending 6y ago
        I can't add much. My wife does significant but non-urgent care and is not working. My dentist is not doing cleanings and checkups. I do have a couple of friends with broken bones that got them set. Personally, I wouldn't be caught dead in an ER unless there were simply no alternative. > People have been avoiding the doc's office for non-urgent stuff out of caution and fear, not because it's forbidden. I'm sure it's both. Either way, it matters. Hypothetically, if we can hit herd immunity fast, that fear would probably diminish quickly. I don't know if that's a good plan or not, but certainly it needs to be considered.