Healthcare System Objectives and Characteristics
Kendra RamlochanThursdayAug 24 at 4:45am
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The discussion board will take a look and focus on answering the following questions which would be what are the two main objectives of a health delivery system and what are the ten characteristics of the U.S. healthcare system. After answering these questions I will be selecting two of the ten characteristics to identify and form a discussion on the differences and similarities with another developed country.
When it comes to the two primary objectives of a health delivery system it would be enabling all citizens to receive health care services whenever needed so basically that would be universal access which makes up the first objective of a health delivery system. The second objective of a health delivery system would be delivering services that are cost-effective and meet certain pre-established standards of quality. The Institute of Medicine says for Americans to enjoy health as an individual and a population must benefit from high quality health care services that are effectively coordinated within a strong public health system that is what the foundation is of the primary objectives.
Now let’s switch our attention to the second question which would be answering what the ten characteristics of the U.S. healthcare system are: these characteristics were found by the textbook, Essentials of the U.S. HealthCare System. Here are what makes up the ten characteristics of the U.S. healthcare system which consist of no central governing agency and little integration and coordination, technology driven delivery system which focuses on acute care, high costs, unequal access, and average outcome,delivery of health care under imperfect market conditions, government as subsidiary to the private sector, fusion of market justice and social justice, balance of power and multiple players, quest for integration and accountability, access to health care services selectively based on insurance coverage, and the last characteristic is legal risks influencing practice behaviors. From Colossians 3:12-15 says “put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful (English Standard Bible, 2016).”
So far the questions that were asked earlier have been answered. I will now be selecting two of the ten characteristics to further elaborate on that will be countered with that of another developed country which would be South Korea. The two characteristics would be the government as a subsidiary to the private sector and a quest for integration and accountability.
According to the Asia Pacific Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, universal health coverage has led to improvement in health outcomes in South Korea that have in turn has made the health status of the population in South Korea better than other countries in that region. National healthcare insurance distributed by South Korea relies on government subsidies because of the massive economic growth that the country has experienced over the years. It makes me think that the United States should come up with this just not Medicaid and Medicare. What makes the National Health Insurance expanded of coverage relates to that of integration and accountability. When it comes between the United States and South Korea when it comes to healthcare I would have to say that South Korea is top tier and maybe the United States should observe what they are doing and how they have become so successful.
Jacob RussellThursdayAug 24 at 12:50am
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In any health delivery system, the first main objective is to ensure sufficient coverage for all citizens. The second main objective is to ensure a sufficient quality and cost-effectiveness of care (Shi & Singh, 2023). The United States has, like many countries, been forced to contend with the fulfillment of these two objectives throughout the numerous growing pains experienced by the modern world, which has taken a heavy toll on suppliers and the funding to keep them operational. For the years 2020 and 2021, coverage has increased by 0.4%, with the number of individuals on private insurance plans decreasing by 0.6% and the number of individuals on public healthcare plans increasing by 1.2%. Even still, roughly 1 in 10 individuals do not have health insurance, which is required to ensure healthcare coverage (Keisler-Starkley & Bunch, 2021). When it comes to quality and cost-effectiveness, the United States does manage to trend well for patient satisfaction and general health, although it still suffers from having the highest medical costs due to the amount of technology and resources invested in delivering rapid acute care (O’Neil & O’Neil, 2008). Therefore, while the United States can be given significant credit for the amount of innovation and effort put into the well being of its citizens, there is a great deal of inefficiency that can be improved upon, especially from an economical standpoint. As healthcare administrators, we may yet be able to solve some of these pressing problems as we work to maximize the effectiveness of the healthcare resources at our disposal.
The U.S. healthcare system is unique from the healthcare systems in other developed countries due to its decentralization, its focus on technological innovation and acute care, its flawed cost-effectiveness and coverage, its partially-free market conditions, its general usage of government as a subsidiary to the private sector, its combination of market justice and social justice, its diverse array of players in the healthcare market, its drive for integration and accountability, its insurance-based access to healthcare services, and its obsession with lawsuits and managing legal risks (Shi & Singh, 2023).
Of these ten characteristics, the focus on technological innovation and insurance-based healthcare access have always stuck out the most to me. Compared to Canada, for example, the United States has a long history of spending more on expensive medical technology than Canada. The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) once reported that the United States had 19.5 MRI scanners per million Americans, whereas Canada’s had 4.6 per million Canadians. Likewise, the United States had 29.5 CT scanners per million Americans compared to Canada’s 10.3 per million Canadians (CIHI, 2005). Canada also uses a national, taxpayer-funded health insurance program to ensure universal coverage, with no significant variation in insurance options or quality. This is due to the fact that private insurance plans cannot legally offer coverage for the same procedures as public insurance, which restricts the freedom of choice to services such as dental and vision plans (Flood & Archibald, 2001). Whether a nation adopts policies similar to what is in place in modern-day America or Canada, it is always important that we provide a means for our loved ones to be treated well. We owe it to both strangers and loved ones to maximize healthcare coverage for the sake of the one-tenth of Americans that still need it, and nowhere is that imperative better declared than in 1 Timothy 5:8, which states, “But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever” (Crossway, 2001). The United States is still very much a patchwork of solutions to people’s healthcare needs, but that patchwork can one day become a quilt to cover everyone.
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