For most spine surgeons, the pandemic has meant closing their practice doors and turning to telemedicine.
But in some states, elective surgeries may resume soon. Here are nine key updates for surgeons to know.
1. Elective surgery is beginning again in some states, which will lower the strain on practices and hospitals of canceling or postponing those procedures. However, surgeons must figure out how to ramp back up again, queue patients who need surgery most and ensure the safety of their patients and surgical teams. AAOS published clinical considerations for returning to elective procedures.
2. One in five physicians are furloughed or taking a pay cut, according to a report from Merritt Hawkins and the Physicians Foundation. Going forward, 14 percent of physicians plan to change practice settings while 18 percent said they would retire, temporarily close or opt out of patient care.
3. The Medical Group Management Association said 97 percent of U.S. medical practices have reported negative financial impact due to COVID-19. Practice revenue is down 55 percent across the board and patient volume has dropped 60 percent since the pandemic began.
4. Some spine and orthopedic groups are moving forward with growth plans, despite the pandemic. Florida-based Masson Spine Institute is opening a satellite ASC in Park City, Utah, the practice announced on April 21.
5. Companies also continue to move forward with new spine devices, despite the drought in elective procedures. Precision spine launched a new fusion system, and Centinel Spine reported it received FDA approval for two-level lumbar total disc replacement for the prodisc L on April 14. There were 19 spine devices that received FDA clearance in March.
6. The pandemic hit the ASC sector hard, but Moody's thinks it will be among the first to recover after the pandemic. The timeline is uncertain, but the firm projects it can recoup lost volume because there will be pent-up demand for these procedures. Many patients who postponed spine procedures are living with chronic pain and eager to receive treatment.
7. Orthopedic surgeons continue to be deployed to the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the chief of orthopedic surgery at Boston-based Massachusetts General Hospital Mitch Harris, MD.
8. Unemployment continues to ravage states, according to WalletHub. About 26.5 million Americans have lost their jobs since the pandemic began. The hardest hit states are Florida, Louisiana, West Virginia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia and Colorado.
9. Telemedicine may become a more permanent fixture in the orthopedic and spine space, as patients have become accustomed to connecting with their physicians virtually. Spine and neurosurgeons can connect with their patients for consultations, pre-surgery check-ins or postoperative visits via telemedicine going forward. CEO of St. Charles, Ill.-based Genesis Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Andrew Shadid discussed some of those trends during an interview with Becker's.