US healthcare as a business - Assignment Example

? US Health Care The healthcare system in the USA has distinct features that identify it in its functioning, as wellas its running. The first aspect is based on government funding of the public healthcare system, which sees the United States spend an estimated 15% of the gross domestic product on healthcare. However, the US health care system requires that patients have sufficient funds to cater for their medical fees in both public and private institutions, which justifies the existence of the medical insurance. This serves to create a viable and sustainable healthcare provision system that caters for the needs of the American population. Nevertheless, the seemingly stable system has been subject to scrutiny following the evolution of the healthcare sector into a business venture, raising ethical and moral concerns. Service providers, therefore, strive to ensure that they maintain an amicable flow of services as well as improve on their quality. In order to stay in business and achieve set goals, an organization should ensure that adherence to ethics remain a catalyst for its growth and expansion. With this in mind, this paper seeks to explore the ethical issues facing leaders in the health care sector in the US as well as propose possible resolutions to the ethical concerns. While health care provides unique business opportunities, the professional and compassionate nature of management provides the difference from other business ventures. Health care management is based on understanding ethical responsibilities associated with the provision of care to those in need. Such exploration into health care management and ethics reveal an in-depth classification that appeal to an individual's duty and obligation in adherence to rules and norms. This way, management ethics can merge with clinical ethics to work for the benefit of the society since they establish an efficient platform for resolving ethical dilemma. However, the adoption of business practices in health care facilities often places the quality of services at risk as leaders turn the sector into a money making mill. This is especially the case in most facilities in private practice and those run by organizations seeking to diversify their role in society. As a result, a worrying trend emerges in the sector, as health care services turn commercial in order to maximize profit margins at the expense of needy patients. For this reason, it is not a wonder that the cost of care in most developing countries continues to escalate and threaten economic development. Nonetheless, business practices can effectively coexist with concepts involved in the health sector to produce a highly efficient health system. This follows the resolution of concerns regarding treatment of patients while focusing on the returns instead of offering quality care. Although there are numerous ethical challenges that affect the delivery of health care services in the community, accountability falls squarely on various leaders in the sector. This remains an important determinant of efficiency in health care since accountability advocates for responsible and meticulous adherence to the code of conduct. This is especially so since human lives are entrusted to concerned personnel to offer care and relief. Accountability ensures professionalism that instills integrity and patient oriented interventions, which are necessary attributes for a sustainable health care system (Bushell and Shelest, 2002). This works to ensure the adoption of high ethical standards that enforce dignity and professionalism in the provision of health care services to the society. While the implementation of such qualities remains a challenge, leaders in various departments are required to establish governing structures that brainstorm on ethical dilemmas and make sound decisions. The application of the term accountability in health care system is often associated with internal wrangles as leaders seek to absorb themselves from blame (Harber and Ball, 2003). Accountability in a health care setting involves taking responsibility of medical procedures and processes in accordance to set regulations and standard operating procedures. Accountability operates based on a wide range of domains that form the basis of evaluating compliance with the scope of the specified mandate, and include professional competence, ethical conduct, and financial performance. Enforcing accountability entails formal and informal procedures that have unique stratification to cover ramifications in various departments such as finance, public relations, and the medical section. The effective application of this concept facilitates the success of health care activities, which follows enhanced managerial systems. In a health care setting, one can held accountable for the events under his/her control considering that all barriers are non-existent and the situation presents positive odds. In essence, one cannot be held liable for the inadequacies resulting from barriers posed by other department other than his/her own (Cox, 2010). Managers in health care facilities are responsible for ensuring that necessary support in terms of technology and equipment is available for their personnel. In this case, the leaders lie faulted in the event of medical errors for failing to remove barriers that impede provision of quality services to ailing patients. It is important to ensure efficiency beforehand through responsible corporate governance as opposed to enforcing accountability following negative outcomes. This is because such attempts only serve to aggravate the situation as the team charged with health care delivery engages with defensive behavior, blame shifting, and cover-up attempts. For this reason, leaders in various health departments ought to uphold and enforce ethical discipline to their respective teams. However, such responsibility remains deficient contributing to enormous disparities in the health care system. Often, such inconsistencies at a national level are consequences of lack of accountability among policy makers and leaders in the health care system, which has seen the level of service delivery, deteriorate (Manasse and Andrew M., 2011). There are numerous problems within the current health care system in the United States among them is the provision of medical insurance that traceable back to lack of accountability. The US system is rated to have a poor cost-benefit ration where a significant number of people lack insurance while others are underinsured. This has served to push the costs of healthcare services to an all-time high, which has in turn stratified medical care where patients receive medical services depending on how much they are willing to pay. Moreover, many are the times that the insurance companies dedicate their efforts to avoid paying claims. This reduces transparency within the healthcare system where insurance providers maximize their profits at the expense of the patients. It is essential to establish universal coverage for all citizens regardless of their financial backgrounds. As such, the government should strive to develop viable policies that will transform the healthcare sector to be empathetic rather than profit oriented. A solution to the prevailing situation is also feasible in the establishment of healthy competition among insurance providers and limiting their profits. In addition, limiting bureaucracy in the system would serve to divert attention to patients and not profits. Owing to poor managerial skills, healthcare organizations are prone the dangers of monotonous procedures and development of a normal way of doing things. This eventually translates to poor performance by the medical staff leading to poor efficiency and wastage of time and resources. In spite of the existence of a code of conduct and ethics, medical personnel lack proper guidance in obtaining informed consent with regard to patient care. As a result, medical procedures are highly vulnerable to errors since patients may reactive negatively to intervention. The resolution of such cases often establish heavy division among health care personnel and puts them against the immediate family of the patient leading to legal confrontations. Efficient accountability should establish appropriate policies to govern issues related to informed consent with regard to experimental medical procedures and recruitment of research participants. In addition, the adoption of alternative frameworks such as the lean initiatives within healthcare organizations has its share of benefits ranging from better management of resources to satisfied consumers. Such concepts are associated with increased employee satisfaction owing to frequent and adequate involved in the decision making process (Nelson, 2005). This is a guaranteed means of enhancing performance by ensuring proper utilization of talents and resources to the benefit of the patient. With the remedies briefly mentioned above, alternative approaches are available by considering volumes of information related to accountability in health care management. It is critical to examine customer feedback on the quality of services offered at a given health care facility, which serves to paint a clear image of the situation. This way, areas that are in need of improvement are easily highlighted as efforts to strengthen accountability within the sector are formulated. As well important is a review of existing standard operating procedures in order to ensure up-to-date protocols run in health care institutions, which serves to enhance efficiency and quality of service. Additional information with regard to resolving accountability issues should evaluate the performance of medical personnel and their contribution towards achieving institutional goals. Oversight committees provide a crucial avenue for the resolution of ethical issues arising in a health care setting by observing an informed perspective of the conflict. Such congregations should comprise of professionals drawn from various departments to mediate matters of conflict in accordance to the rule of law. Although such committees exist at different levels of health care management, they lack accomplished competence to investigate or prosecute on of their own (Darr, 2000). As such, they are prone manipulation from accused persons and thus, end up as a waste of scarce resources. Nevertheless, with appropriate reforms in the mandate and scope, the committees can work independently and deliver appropriate penalties for those that contravene ethical guidelines. In the event of a complexity, the committee can transfer the case to a higher authority for adjudication. Moreover, there is need to have a properly constituted administration that includes specialized organs to address ethical hurdles, which serves to increase efficiency. The level of specialization experienced in these instruments ought to facilitate accountability, which works to enhance the quality of life of patients. It is important that services target patients at every stage of offering relief to the ill. Another viable option in encouraging accountability entails the establishment of a reward system that acknowledges employees and departments with exemplary performance while discharging their duties. The reward system should provide innovative reward packages that are readily acceptable by the staff and serve to reinforce the benefits of efficiency at work. This strategy doubles as an investment on the highly valued staff who shares in the success that they created. Moreover, this serves to motivate the employees to go an extra mile in providing customer satisfaction, which adds value to operations while reinforcing the core purpose, goals, and values. Moreover, critical in encouraging improving accountability in health care facilities is bridging the gap between theory and practice with regard to nursing. A key strategy that proves valuable in closing the theory-practice gap is by embracing teaching strategies, which are involving health care personnel. Such teaching approaches should involve clarifications on the roles of each profession with the health care sector. This can be attained through teaching approaches that are up-to-date and techniques that highlight the importance of all aspects of nursing. Moreover, the incorporation of teaching strategies that bear practical approaches should be affirmed through policies to encourage implementation. The integration of theoretical frameworks with practical follow-ups as seen in internship programs serves to improve the quality of services. This is attributed to the emphasis accorded the duty of care, which seeks to stress the need for selflessness among healthcare personnel, especially those involved in providing direct basic care to patients (Levin, 2010). Consequently, nurses are placed at a patient’s personal service through expression of kindness, moral worth and dignity of the self and others. This is irrespective of one’s cultural similarities and differences, thus placing more value on accessibility of health care services to all. In addition, duty of care adds value towards an informed decision-making, which examines the meaning and implication of information provided to them. While challenges remain central in every society, the need to address them is critical for the provision services especially in the health sector. There are dire consequences of running the sector as a business and it revolves around the ethics and morality of the practice. References List Bushell, S & Shelest, B (2002). Discovering Lean Thinking at Progressive Healthcare. Journal for Quality & Participation. Vol. 25 Issue 2, p20-25. Cox, C. (2010). Legal responsibility and accountability. Nursing Management, Vol. 17 Issue 3, p18-20. Darr, K. (2000). Health Care Management Ethics: Business Ethics with a Difference Ethics in Health Services Management. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/3857843.pdf?acceptTC=true Harber, B. & Ball, T. (2003). Redefining Accountability in the Healthcare Sector. Retrieved from http://www.ipac.ca/documents/Redefining%20Accountability%20in%20the%20Healthcare%20Sector.pdf Levin, R. (2010). Integrating evidence-based practice with educational theory in clinical practice for nurse practitioners: bridging the theory practice gap. Research and Theory for Nursing Practice: An International Journal, 24(4), 213-216. Manasse, H. & Andrew, M. (2011). Accepting accountability for the medication-use system. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy. Vol. 68 Issue 15, p1444-1448. Nelson, W. (2005). An Organisational Ethics Decision-Making Process. Retrieved from http://www.ache.org/ABT_ACHE/EthicsToolkit/Ethical_Decision_Process.pdf Read More