The Rise of Coronavirus Heroes
As published in the Las Cruces Sun-News – April 6, 2020
by Tracey Bryan
There are heroes all over our community. In the midst of this present COVID-19 crisis, we see it in living color.
Thousands of children have food on the table, thanks to the tireless efforts of cafeteria workers, teachers, and our school district leaders stepping into the fray to ensure the health and wellbeing of students. There is also the coming shift of educators to 100% virtual environments.
Hundreds of grocery workers tirelessly working to keep food and household items on the shelves, while expanding supply chains to meet higher-than-normal demand, all supported by truck drivers keeping up the flow of goods at unprecedented rates.
Restaurant owners and staff members are migrating to mobile ordering to keep workers working, providing curbside and delivery options to ensure the safety of employees and customers.
And yes, ALL of our healthcare workers on the frontlines of caring for those with and without the virus. As much as anyone, they’ve quickly adapted to changing information about the virus, as well as deployed new assessment and treatment options informed by real-time research and innovation.
We have seen ordinary people transformed into extraordinary heroes, risking exposure to the virus while meeting the needs of their communities. We pray for their safety and look forward to numerous ways we’ll be able to thank them when things return to “normal.”
But it is clear…we are on the verge of a “new normal” in the world of work.
Sheer need is driving adaptation and innovation across the board. The virus has forced a rapid acceleration in technological disruption of the old “normal:”
- Creation of new online platforms for up-to-the-minute information and research findings
- Transition to virtual work environments to observe social distancing restrictions
- Rapid retooling of manufacturing facilities, like automakers making respirators and alcohol distilleries making hand sanitizer
- Telehealth to diagnose and care for patients in their homes in order to protect them against increased exposure to the virus
Electronic Caregiver is the perfect example of this shift – technological disruption in healthcare — and coronavirus makes it more urgent than ever.
The company is at the forefront of using in-home health monitoring and assessing treatment options to maximize safety and protect those most at risk. Through its online platform, it is helping employers minimize the risk of potentially infected employees, including monitoring the employees’ temperature and providing access to healthcare workers who can talk them through symptoms and treatments.
Tim Washburn, chief clinical officer for Electronic Caregiver, said, “We’ve known for a long time that effective care coordination will provide better outcomes for the chronically ill. Electronic Caregiver is delivering and retooling our technology platforms that connect employees, employers, and families to telemedicine for the care they need. We can protect the most valuable asset we have – our people – in a way that is intelligent, sustainable, reasonable, effective, and respectful.”
On the frontlines of this “new normal” of work will be Generation Z (those born after 1997). Some are graduating into a very different world than what was just a couple months ago. Others are in the educational pathway from PK-12 to college to career.
What will they need to know?
They need to be completely comfortable and proficient with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) skills. STEM readiness will ensure workforce readiness in a dynamically changing world. PERIOD.
They’ll also need what Tony Wagner, author of The Global Achievement Gap, calls, “Seven Survival Skills” for the 21st Century Workforce:
- Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
- Collaboration across Networks and Leading by Influence
- Agility and Adaptability
- Initiative and Entrepreneurialism
- Effective Oral and Written Communication
- Accessing and Analyzing Information
- Curiosity and Imagination
This is a generation-defining moment for them and us. Preparing them today for the challenges of tomorrow ensures they’re ready to become the next generation of the heroes, should the need arise.
They will become the “new normal” of New Mexico – well-skilled, STEM-proficient talent ready to carry our community, and our state, forward.
