零工经济或将扩展到医疗行业

归根结底，美国医疗系统最大的问题之一是供需问题。美国许多地区没有足够的医疗专业人员，为大量需要医疗护理的患者提供服务。但随着数字化水平的日益提高，有一个方案可以解决这种不足，即将医疗保健就业市场向零工经济类人员配置系统开放，包括护士岗位。

数字医疗初创公司Nomad Health便采取了这种做法。它将自己形容为医疗人员配置领域的“Airbnb”。该公司属于远程医疗领域的一个分支，只是其更专注于雇主而不是消费者。

该公司推出的系统可以匹配来自特定科室（包括内科和急诊）、正在寻找自由职业机会的医生与需要额外人力的医院。Nomad甚至可以处理后端的保险事务。该公司正在扩大平台，将全美国希望在德克萨斯州加入该平台的医院内寻找短期岗位的认证护士纳入其中。其最终的计划是将该系统在全国铺开。

Nomad联合创始人兼CEO亚力克西·纳齐姆博士在接受《财富》杂志采访时表示：“护士人才的短缺，是妨碍患者得到护理的主要因素。”

而数据似乎也证明了纳齐姆的评估。美国医疗院校联合会预测，相对于美国的人口和医疗需求，到2030年，医生岗位将出现40,800 - 104,900人的缺口（该机构表示，造成这种情况的部分原因是扩大持续医疗教育和医生实习期培训项目的资金不足）。美国护理学院协会也指出了类似令人担忧的趋势，例如护士队伍老龄化，以及人才短缺，无法满足预期需求等。

一项数字解决方案，可能不足以解决这些系统性问题（还需要国家在监管和立法方面做出改变）。但纳齐姆希望这项方案能够帮助缓解一部分没有得到充分认识的医疗需求。（财富中文网）

译者：刘进龙/汪皓

One of the biggest problems in the U.S. medical system boils down to a simple issue of supply and demand. In many parts of the country, there just aren't enough health professionals to deal with a glut of patients who need care. But, in an increasingly digital world, one solution to this shortage could involve opening up the health care job market with a gig economy-style staffing system—including to nurses.

That's the approach that Nomad Health, a digital health upstart which describes itself as an "Airbnb" system for medical staffing, is taking. The company is sort of an offshoot of telemedicine—just one that's more focused on the employer, rather than consumer, side.

It already has a system in place to match doctors from certain specialties (including internal and emergency medicine) who are looking for freelance work with hospitals that need the extra manpower. Nomad even takes care of the back-end insurance paperwork. Now, it's expanding its platform to include certified nurses throughout the country who are seeking short-term positions with participating Texas hospitals. The eventual plan is to roll out the system nationwide.

"The nursing shortage is a major factor when it comes to barriers to accessing care," Nomad co-founder and CEO Dr. Alexi Nazem told Fortune in an interview.

The numbers seem to line up with Nazem's assessment. The Association of American Medical Colleges projects a physician shortage, relative to America's population and medical needs, of 40,800-104,900 by the year 2030 (in part driven by a lack of funding for more continuing medical education and residency programs, according to the AAMC). The American Association of Colleges of Nursing has pointed out similarly troubling trends such as an aging nurse workforce and shortfall against expected demand.

One digital solution likely isn't enough to overcome these major systemic issues (that would also require regulatory and legislative changes). But Nazem hopes that it can help mitigate an under-appreciated need in medicine.