The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the fundamental importance of having a strong, well funded, and agile healthcare system in all countries. In addition to managing unanticipated coronavirus requirements, healthcare providers are learning how to maintain normal operating procedures during a crisis—so patients can receive essential care, economic activity can move forward, and governments can become more resilient in the event of future health emergencies.

Healthcare providers faced six main challenges in addressing healthcare needs of large populations, during and because of the COVID-19 crisis. They needed to figure out how to:

• Manage a significant increase in acutely ill patients.
• Provide non-COVID-19 related outpatient and inpatient care in clinical settings without exposing patients to the virus.
• Meet unprecedented citizen demands for health advice and instill confidence in people reluctant to access care because they’re worried about COVID-19 transmission.
• Help clinicians and staff avoid infection - particularly amidst constraints such as personal protection equipment (PPE) and workforce shortages.
• Work in an agile way to account for rapidly changing public health policies.
• Share information securely and efficiently to enable well-rounded care and to understand more about the virus.