ABSTRACT
Rural surgeons from disparate areas of the United States report on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in their communities as the virus has spread across the country. The pandemic has brought significant changes to the professional, economic, and social lives of the individual surgeons and their communities.
Subject(s)
COVID-19/epidemiology , Rural Health Services , Surgeons , Alaska/epidemiology , Arizona/epidemiology , Health Services, Indigenous/organization & administration , Health Services, Indigenous/statistics & numerical data , Hospitals, Rural/organization & administration , Hospitals, Rural/statistics & numerical data , Humans , Idaho/epidemiology , Illinois/epidemiology , Indiana/epidemiology , Ohio/epidemiology , Oregon/epidemiology , Rural Health Services/organization & administration , Rural Health Services/statistics & numerical data , Rural Population , West Virginia/epidemiologyABSTRACT
Care for rural and urban surgical patients is increasingly more complex due to advancing knowledge and technology. Interhospital transfers occur in approximately 10% of index encounters at rural hospitals secondary to mismatch of patient needs and local resources. Due to the recent expansion of air transport to rural areas, distance and geography are less of a barrier. The interhospital transfer process is understudied and far from standardized. Interhospital transfer status is associated with increase in mortality, complications, length of stay, and costs. The cost, price to patients, and safety of air ambulance transports cannot be ignored.
Subject(s)
Rural Health Services , Rural Health , Surgical Procedures, Operative , Critical Illness , Humans , Patient Handoff , Patient Transfer , Transportation of Patients , United StatesABSTRACT
Nine surgeons from rural and remote communities in the United States share early experiences preparing for the COVID-19 pandemic. Relating experiences remarkably different from health care providers in urban areas in America most affected by the first stages of the outbreak, they tell the challenges of organizing resources in facilities already struggling with poverty-stricken communities far from established health care resources and supplies. From Alaska to Appalachia and the Navajo Nation to the rural midwest, they show the leadership and professionalism that exemplify rural surgery.
