Diagnosing Problems in the Healthcare Industry

The healthcare industry isn’t exactly making society sicker. In fact, there’s been a mind-boggling number of medical advancements and breakthroughs in just the last 10 years. From functional MRIs, which now allow doctors to visualize how the brain works versus just looks, to 3D-printed prosthetics, to life-saving cancer immunotherapies, medical science has actually been rolling lately. That said, there are problems with the healthcare industry.

And we need to differentiate between medical science and the healthcare industry. If medical science is the lumber, the healthcare system is the contractor hired to build the house. Unfortunately, similar to some contractors, the healthcare system often prioritizes profit margins over all else. Unlike contractors, however, cutting corners in healthcare doesn’t mean drafty windows; it means our collective health suffers.

This isn’t necessarily true across the clipboard, as plenty of healthcare providers and quality institutions are truly dedicated to quality patient care. But, since the sector’s primary objective is to maintain and improve public health, the healthcare system as a whole – especially in the United States – doesn’t get a clean bill of health when it comes to efficiency, accessibility, and overall effectiveness. There are serious problems with the healthcare industry.

While the healthcare industry faces a range of complex issues, there are potential strategies for improvement, such as the various applications of decentralized science, or DeSci. But, before considering any treatment options, we must first identify some of the most glaring symptoms within the healthcare system and diagnose how these problems adversely affect public health.

Healthcare Industry Overemphasizes Treatment Over Prevention

Healthcare systems often prioritize treating illnesses rather than preventing them in the first place. This can lead to a cycle where individuals only seek medical help once they’re already sick, rather than focusing on preventive measures like healthy lifestyle choices, nutrition, and regular exercise. As an important note, this cycle of treatment versus stop-gap prevention is typically more profitable.

Treatment will always be necessary for managing existing health issues, but the industry tends to allocate way more funding for treatment than prevention. For instance, there are not a whole lot of public health campaigns on the benefits of exercise, but you’ll see countless commercials for a slew of different type-2 diabetes medications. Overall, taking preventive measures can help us avoid more costly treatments later (and improve our quality of life). Good for us; but not quite as good for the industry’s bottom line, which leads us to another diagnosable problem with the healthcare industry.

The Healthcare System Often Prioritizes Profits Over Patients

In some healthcare systems, particularly those driven by profit, there may be incentives for healthcare professionals to prioritize treatments that are profitable over those that are most effective for patients. This can sometimes lead to over-prescription of medications, unnecessary procedures, and the promotion of expensive treatments over more cost-effective alternatives. In essence, healthcare professionals may be incentivized or coerced to create generally deceptive health plans.

To address this issue, there needs to be a focus on strategies to contain rising healthcare costs, such as price transparency, value-based care models, and the ability to negotiate drug prices. Implementing value-based care, in particular, can help reduce overall expenses, as this model incentivizes patient outcomes over the amount of services the patient receives. Also, transparent pricing will allow patients to make more informed choices concerning their own care plan. Overall, the healthcare system should operate within ethical guidelines that prioritize a patient’s well-being over a stakeholder’s bottom line.

Many Lack Access to Quality Healthcare

In many parts of the world, including within the U.S., access to quality healthcare is limited or unevenly distributed. This directly correlates to disparities in health outcomes. Opponents of solutions such as universal healthcare tend to say something like, “U.S. hospitals won’t leave you bleeding in the parking lot.” While this may be true if you’re uninsured or underinsured, hospitals will quickly sew you up, wish you luck, and plop you back in the parking lot.

However, the lack of healthcare services isn’t limited to triage temperament and expedited emergency services. Whether it’s due to socioeconomic status or living in rural areas, people who lack access to regular healthcare don’t typically receive any preventative care or timely treatment for illnesses, leading to worse health outcomes overall. Lack of healthcare access also leads to fractured care plans, another diagnosable problem of the current system. 

Fragmentation of Care Is a Serious Problem with the Healthcare Industry

As the term implies, fragmented healthcare refers to a lack of coordination between care providers, especially when it comes to sharing patient data and electronic health records. For example, a person with a chronic condition may need to see multiple specialists for treatment. Although this is common, when the healthcare system lacks communication and coordination, the patient may undergo redundant testing or receive conflicting treatment plans. This siloed approach to care also leads to administrative hurdles, increasing costs for both the patient and the care providers.

While the problem of fractured care is complex, one solution is empowering patients to actively engage in their treatment plans while improving health information technologies. This is where decentralized science (DeSci) can play an important role. For example, AxonDAO is currently creating a digital framework with algorithmic protocols that enable patients to control their own biodata. Instead of relying on institutions to share patient information, this patient-centered approach allows individuals to provide their information across multiple providers, helping to ensure treatment cohesion and quality care. 

The Healthcare System Tries to Treat Absolutely Everything

At first glance, healthcare providers treating things doesn’t seem like a diagnosable problem. However, the modern healthcare system tends to overdiagnose and medicalize normal aspects of life, such as aging and grief. This can lead to overtreatment, as well as unnecessary stress and costs for individuals who are convinced that their natural life experience requires a medical solution. 

The issue of overtreatment is a bit tricky to approach. On one hand, improved screening technologies and wider diagnostic criteria have led to more hands-on treatment interventions. This sounds a lot like preventative care, which as discussed earlier, can be incredibly beneficial. However, on the other hand, there’s a thin line between proactive, preventative care and profit-driven commercialization. The opioid crisis is an excellent and tragic example of the consequences of overdiagnosing due to the influence of big pharma and direct-to-doctor advertising. 

While that’s an extreme case, treating something like “pre-diabetes” with medication versus a patient referral to a dietician is an example of an overdiagnosing standard of practice over preventative care. And, as a note, sometimes a friendly convo during a time of grief is more beneficial than a Xanny bar script.

The Healthcare System Refuses to Address Environmental Factors

While not directly the fault of the healthcare industry, environmental factors such as pollution, toxins, and our innutritious food contribute to poor health outcomes. While the culprits of these problems dwell in other industries, healthcare – due to its inherent ethos – should adequately address these factors or prioritize preventive measures to mitigate their effects.

For example, DeSci Hub recently spoke to regenerative farmer Ed Bourgeois, who explained that it takes 17 modern blueberries to equate to the health benefits – vitamins, antioxidants, etc. – of one real blueberry plucked from yesteryear. For the healthcare system to largely turn a blind eye to environmental changes and factors seems like another example of “sick care” over healthcare.

In terms of DeSci and its breadth of potential applications, a nuanced perspective and approach may help mitigate some of the significant challenges in the conventional healthcare industry. Utilizing new technologies, such as artificial intelligence and cutting-edge information technology, DeSci can align its inherent values with well-meaning institutions while circumventing the antiquated, oft-predatory, and profit-driven practices of bad actors. We believe decentralized science is the future – and, more importantly – a potent therapeutic to the diagnosable problems in the healthcare industry.