January 6, 2022 – According to Medtech Dive, a recent study conducted by William Blair found that the omicron variant could further delay a return to normal patient volumes until mid-2022, which is consistent with a new study regarding surgeries and diagnostic testing. Analysts at BTIG ran a flash survey of 51 hospital administrators, which found that a mixture of healthcare staff shortages and rising COVID-19 admissions is forcing hospitals to cancel elective surgeries and postpone diagnostic and imaging procedures.
“With hospitals short-staffed and COVID hospitalizations increasing, there just isn’t enough availability of beds or providers to handle all surgical patients. In short, the areas that are being hardest hit are the usual suspects, orthopedics and elective general surgery, while cardiac surgery and non-elective general surgery appear to be least impacted,” the BTIG analysts wrote.
These results are already happening in the real world. Medtech Dive reports that COVID-19 hospitalization rates are at a record in Illinois, forcing Chicago-area hospitals to delay elective procedures. Even hospitals in the U.K. are having to make the same decisions, as the more contagious variant is increasing staff absences, which in turn further disrupts patient care.
If the forecasts showing that elective surgery will be impacted for three to four weeks are correct, BTIG analysts are expecting that “medtech could suffer around a 7% top-line impact.” After omicron peaks, the analysts aren’t expecting staffing challenges to resolve. Medtech Dive writes that “70% of physicians polled by William Blair said hiring staff has become more difficult, mainly because of a ‘lack of qualified applicants’ and ‘elevated compensation.’”