The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on economies, countries and, ultimately, people’s lives. As is often the case, the lessons learned are one positive outcome from such horrific events. And those lessons we have learned recently provide an opportunity to rethink and, perhaps, redesign general population health.

It has become apparent that the coronavirus affects the population to various degrees, based on age, race, and the health of the individual. The terms “pre-existing condition,” “underlying condition,” and “compromised health” have become all too common.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, adults of any age with the following conditions are at increased risk of severe illness from the virus that causes COVID-19:

Cancer
Chronic kidney disease
COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant
Obesity (body mass index [BMI] of 30 kg/m2 or higher but < 40 kg/m2)
Severe Obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2)
Sickle cell disease
Smoking
Type 2 diabetes mellitus

People with these conditions that are afflicted with the coronavirus are far more likely to suffer severe symptoms and have a much higher morbidity rate than the general population. According to the Washington Post, during the first four months of the virus outbreak, patients with underlying conditions were 12 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than healthier patients.

How Can Those at Risk Mitigate Their Condition?

The question is: What can a person do to mitigate these conditions? The answer starts with maintaining a healthy lifestyle, which includes nutrition, exercise, and mental and emotional balance.

We have witnessed an interesting shift in terminology and direction, as the Healthcare industry has transitioned from a focus on treatment of illness or conditions to a focus on preventing them. This shift began over the past few years, prior to COVID-19, and is captured in the popular term “Health and Wellness.”

The question is: What is Wellness and how does Wellness translate to the individual?

Be Well

The Global Wellness Institute defines wellness as the active pursuit of activities, choices, and lifestyles that lead to a state of holistic health. This includes “…practicing healthy habits on a daily basis to attain better physical and mental health outcomes, so that instead of just surviving, you're thriving.”

As we begin to better understand the benefits of a healthier lifestyle, we can expect a surge in fitness and exercise as part of this dynamic.

Fitness and exercise come in many shapes and forms. Whether it is a gym membership, working out in a home gym, riding a bike, taking a hike, or walking the dog, the key is to get the body moving. The old adage, “a body in motion tends to stay in motion” is very appropriate. And as we age and our bodies change this becomes even more evident.

Health & Wellness

A healthy population has a better chance of dealing with the next virus, and a healthy population starts with healthy individuals. Health and Wellness is the starting point for each and every individual.

It is also predictable that providers, employers, and insurers will drive the effort to improve the Health and Wellness of the population. The financial impact can be staggering at every level. Unemployment, failing businesses, and faltering economies have become an all too common outcome of the pandemic. This external support will further reinforce the effort of the population to pursue an enhanced lifestyle based on healthier choices.

Making a Plan for Wellness

One might expect a shift in U.S. Population Health strategy, as we emerge from the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the assumption that future pandemics may occur, rethinking how to best prepare the population to deal with future occurrences would be prudent, if not necessary. A strategy with a renewed emphasis on Wellness may hold the key to reducing the devastating impact of future outbreaks on economies, countries, and, most importantly, on individuals.

New Wellness Strategies

So, how do we, as a society, begin to develop new wellness strategies for the general population? It starts with the fitness and healthcare industries coming together and creating a strong partnership. Now is the ideal time for fitness operators, who have leveraged technology and created programs during the pandemic, to share this information and their tools with the healthcare industry, so together they can help individuals.

Next, both the healthcare and fitness industries need to work together to offer wellness strategies to the general population. Club Industry magazine’s 2020 Healthcare Report titled “The Future of Fitness Is in Healthcare Integration” offered some suggestions:

1. Educating people on the benefits of regular exercise and how regular physical activity can profoundly impact the risk and severity of chronic diseases, lowering the rate of musculoskeletal injuries, and promoting cognitive function and brain health.
2. Having doctors write prescriptions for fitness regimens.
3. Taking advantage of smart equipment, sensors, and wearables and incorporating this technology into tracking healthcare progress and physical activity.
4. Having coaching and counseling services represented in medical practices.
5. Making spa and wellness services part of a fitness and/or medical program. This includes massage, acupuncture, chiropractic medicine, yoga therapy, and mindful meditation.
6. Creating programs and services that facilitate strong immune systems.
7. Offering more education around fitness and dietary guidelines for ideal health.
8. Having insurers seeks ways to keep members healthy and to reward those that are healthy; creating medical and fitness-based products and services that are reimbursed by insurance.
9. Commissioning clinical trials to corroborate the correlation between services provided by the fitness industry and improved health.

There is no question our society needs to redefine population health. And in the wake of the coronavirus, there is no better time than now. To do this, our fitness and wellness industries need to work together to develop new wellness strategies, so the general population will be healthier, happier, and, hopefully, less susceptible to future viruses and pandemics.