Task sharing
In geographic locations currently facing or anticipating the wave of COVID-19 patients, neurosurgeons can begin task sharing to strengthen workforce systems while continuing to triage operative cases and invest in contingency plans if the pandemic is prolonged 1).
Task sharing uses tiered staffing models with collaborative teams of specialists and less qualified cadres who share clinical responsibility and rely on iterative communication and training to preserve high-quality outcomes. The application of task shifting and task sharing for medical, surgical, and neurosurgical specialties in low-resource settings has shown that task sharing is preferred to task shifting to maintain safety.
As patient burden exceeds provider capacity, there will be greater pressures to use a task-shifting approach with less oversight, but task sharing is preferred when possible