Impact of the digital divide in the age of COVID-19
Anita Ramsetty, Cristin Swords Adams
Abstract
In early 2020, talks of preparation for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) were furiously circulating around the healthcare system nationwide, and having seen what was occurring in China, and later in Italy, we feared what was to come. Like many others, our hospital system began looking closely at the recommendations for decreasing transmission of COVID-19, chief among them social distancing. By early March, the need for an immediate adaptation of our clinical care delivery system was clear. Within a week, clinics had transitioned from in-person visits to telehealth involving telephone or video. Screening processes for COVID-19 were quickly made available on a free online platform through which at-risk individuals were directed to drivethrough centers for in-person testing.