How does the U.S. health care delivery system compare with other countries’ health care delivery systems? What is the relationship of a country economic resources to health outcomes? How does the funding of services influence access to care? How does government involvement in health care delivery inform the patient/consumer experience?
There are no simple answers to the questions above.
Yet, health care administrators must engage in thoughtful, ongoing inquiry into questions such as these in order to gain a well-rounded perspective on health care delivery. In your Assignment for this module, you will analyze and compare data to deepen your understanding of the U.S. health care delivery system, as well as other health care delivery systems around the world. Your examination of data can provide valuable insights, but it is also important to consider the context surrounding health care expenditures and outcomes. In this Discussion, you will examine health system characteristics, such as government involvement and funding of health care delivery in the United States and other nations.
For this Discussion and the Assignment, select two countries to compare with the United States in terms of health care (i.e., compare the same countries in both the Discussion and Assignment). One country must be a developed country, and the other must be considered a developing (low- or middle-income) country: as much as possible, select countries that are of similar size.
The International Statistical Institute: Developing Countries
World Bank: Country and Lending Groups
Next, review the information in the Learning Resources related to health system characteristics, particularly Chapter 1 in the Shi and Singh textbook. Research the characteristics of the U.S. health care delivery system and the systems of your selected countries using the Walden Library and credible websites, such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) site, found in this module Learning Resources.
Consider the following questions as you research each country:
How is the health system organized? Is there a central governing agency?
How does an individual gain access to needed services, including specialized care?
How are health care services paid for? For example, does the country have a national health system with tax-funded coverage, a health insurance system with a single payer, a health insurance system with multiple insurers, or something else?
What benefits do people in this country experience because of the health system’s characteristics? For instance, are people guaranteed access to health care services? Do patients receive well-coordinated care because their health information is readily available to providers through an integrated technology system? Do they have a great deal of choice when selecting physicians?
What challenges do people in this country encounter? For instance, is there typically a long wait to see a specialist? Do patients encounter adverse effects because medical supplies are not readily available? Are health care services prohibitively expensive for most people?
Post a substantive and cohesive response to the following:
Analyze two or more defining characteristics of the U.S. health care system.
Explain how these characteristics compare to the characteristics of the health care systems of your selected countries.
Evaluate potential benefits and challenges for people in your selected countries based on the health system characteristics you have identified.
Reminder: Use and cite sources to support your posting and responses.
Answer:
This essay is based on the characteristics of the healthcare system of USA. The health care system in USA is quite different from the systems of other developed countries. The country does not have any universal healthcare system. The USA healthcare system is a hybrid system. It does not operate on a single payer health system.
The two countries with which the health care characteristics of USA are compared in this essay are India which is a middle income country and England which is a developed country (Worldbank.org, 2017). The healthcare system of India is vast. There are many differences in quality of health care between the rural and urban areas of India. The health care system in London is generally provided by the National Healthcare Service which provides health care to the residents of London. The health care system in United Kingdom is mainly organized by the British National Healthcare System which provides health care services to the residents of London. Health care in UK is considered to be the right and not the privilege of the residents of the country. In USA the health care system is funded publicly (Swayne, Duncan & Ginter, 2012). The person who pays gets the treatment in this case. Health care plans in UK are not actually free for the citizens. The cost for the healthcare systems is paid through the tax paid by the citizens. The cost incurred by the citizens is equal. This is the reason why the health care services in UK are free at the point of access. The cost of health care services in USA are than other countries.
The health care services are paid for by the government programs, private health insurance and the citizen’s personal funds. The availability of health care services is an important factor. The availability of health care services in USA is better as compared to UK. The wait time for emergency patients in USA is 58 minutes whereas, for those in UK is approximately four hours. The challenges faced by the citizens of London due the healthcare system are, the quality of primary care in different in different parts of the country, the health of the citizens in some parts of the country is very poor, the patterns of hospitalization is different and availability of services also varies. The challenges faced by the citizens of USA due to the health care system are, the cost of health care is high and hence the government and the citizens have to spend more on the health care services, which in turn have an impact on the country’s economy. The benefits of the health care services are different for USA and UK. The health care services in USA are readily available for the citizens as it has been discussed that the wait time for the emergency services is low. On the other hand, the services in UK are cheaper and free at the point of service. The expenses for the services are paid by the citizens of the country in the form of tax to the government. The system is uniform for all in this case (Oecd.org, 2017). The healthcare system in India can be called universal. The quality of health care differs a lot when compared with the urban and rural areas. The healthcare services are funded by the government in urban and rural areas. The health care system funded by the government is not always adequate, due to which the citizens mostly opt for private health care services. The rural areas suffer a lot due to the poor health services provided by the government. The healthcare services provided in the urban areas are beneficial for the citizens if the services are private. The private healthcare services are better as compared to the government services (Rao & Choudhury, 2012).
From the above discussion it can derived that the USA healthcare services are overpriced, but the services are readily available. On the other hand the services in UK are cheaper as compared to USA, but the availability is less. In case of India, the health care services provided by private hospitals is much better as that of government hospitals. Funding of services by the government organizations plays an important role on the quality of service and also on the economy of the country.
References:
Oecd.org. (2017). Health policies and data - OECD. Oecd.org. Retrieved 22 September 2017, from https://www.oecd.org/health/health-systems/
Rao, M. G., & Choudhury, M. (2012). Health care financing reforms in India. National Institute of Public Finance and Policy.
Swayne, L. E., Duncan, W. J., & Ginter, P. M. (2012). Strategic management of health care organizations. John Wiley & Sons.
Worldbank.org. (2017). European Union Overview. Worldbank.org. Retrieved 22 September 2017, from https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/eu/overview
