Inpatient and Ambulatory Care - Assignment Example

Inpatient care is dispensed to a patient in a hospital, clinic or medical center. The patient is required to receive care within the medical center for an extended period of time . Inpatient care can only be delivered in the confines of a medical facility. Ambulatory care can be provided in the hospital setting or outside the hospital setting. Outside of the hospital, ambulatory care can be provided at the home, retail clinics, doctor’s offices, education facilities, pharmaceuticals, and community centers.

Patients are attended to at these venues for a relatively shorter period than at inpatient care venues. Doctors have the authority of deciding whether a patient should be put under inpatient care and when they can be discharged from the hospital. In some situations, patients have the autonomy to decide whether they want inpatient care or ambulatory care. A patient is discharged when they have healed considerably and have adequate support outside of the hospital. Inpatient care is provided to patients who need critical care such as those who are extremely ill.

Patients who require constant observation or more involving care from medical care providers are usually placed in inpatient programs (Wu, 2014). Patients who require advanced medical procedures such as specialized surgeries or transplants are usually placed under inpatient care. Emergency medical cases are almost always placed under inpatient care. Rehabilitation cases can also be placed under inpatient care.