Identify five milestones of medicine and medical education and their importance to health care
U.S. Healthcare System
LEARNING OBJECTIVES-U.S. Healthcare System
The student will be able to:
Identify five milestones of medicine and medical education and their importance to health care.
Identify five milestones of the hospital system and their importance to health care.
Identify five milestones of public health and their importance to health care.
Identify five milestones of health insurance and their importance to health care.
Explain the difference between primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention.
Explain the concept of the iron triangle as it applies to health care.
DID YOU KNOW THAT?
When the practice of medicine first began, tradesmen such as barbers practiced medicine. They often used the same razor to cut hair as to perform surgery.
In 2010, the United States spent $2.6 trillion on healthcare spending or 17.6% of the gross domestic product, which is the highest in the world.
In 2011, U.S. Census data indicate there were 48.6 million uninsured U.S. citizens, which is a decrease from 50 million in 2010.U.S. Healthcare System
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) predicts annual healthcare costs will be $4.64 trillion by 2020, which represents nearly 20% of the U.S. gross domestic product.
The United States is one of only a few developed countries that does not have universal healthcare coverage.
In 2002, the Joint Commission issued hospital standards requiring them to inform their patients if their results were not consistent with typical care results.
INTRODUCTION
It is important as a healthcare consumer to understand the history of the U.S. healthcare delivery system, how it operates today, who participates in the system, what legal and ethical issues arise as a result of the system, and what problems continue to plague the healthcare system. We are all consumers of health care. Yet, in many instances, we are ignorant of what we are actually purchasing. If we were going to spend $1,000 on an appliance or a flat screen television, many of us would research the product to determine if what we are purchasing is the best product for us. This same concept should be applied to purchasing healthcare services.
Increasing healthcare consumer awareness will protect you in both the personal and professional aspects of your life. You may decide to pursue a career in health care either as a provider or as an administrator. You may also decide to manage a business where you will have the responsibility of providing health care to your employees. And lastly, from a personal standpoint, you should have the knowledge from a consumer point of view so you can make informed decisions about what matters most—your health. The federal government agrees with this philosophy. Recently, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) used its claim data to publish the hospital costs of the 100 most common treatments nationwide. The purpose of this effort is to provide data to consumers regarding healthcare costs because the costs vary considerably across the United States. This effort may also encourage pricing competition of healthcare services (Godert, 2013).U.S. Healthcare System
U.S. Healthcare System