Pandemics Are the Mother of Invention

By KIM BELLARD If, as they say, necessity is the mother of invention, then you’d have to say that the COVID-19 pandemic is proving to be the mother of invention and innovation.  And, like Isaac Hayes sang about Shaft, it is a “bad mother…(shut your mouth).” Many believe that the Allies won WWII in large part because of how industry in the U.S. geared up to produce fantastic amounts of weapons and other war materials.  It took some time for businesses to retool and get production lines flowing, during which the Axis powers made frightening advances, but once they did it was only a matter of time until the Allies would prevail. Similarly, COVID-19 is making scary inroads around the world, while businesses are still gearing up to produce the number of ventilators, personal protective equipment (PPE), tests, and other badly needed supplies.  COVID-19 is currently outnumbering these efforts, but eventually we’ll get the necessary equipment in the needed amounts.   Eventually.   What intrigues me, though, is how people are innovating, inventing new solutions to the shortages we face.  I want to highlight a few of these: Hospitals: China received a lot of press when they built COVID-19 hospitals in a matter of days, and now that is starting to happen here. In New York City, the U.S. current epicenter, the Army Corps of Engineers has, within a matter of days, repurposed the Javi...
Source: The Health Care Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: COVID-19 COVID-19 testing health innovation Kim Bellard Pandemic ventilators Source Type: blogs