Issues the USA Healthcare Faces Today - Essay Example

"Issues the USA Healthcare Face Today" is a great example of a paper on medical ethics.
Health care is essential for the continued existence of human life. Disease control and treatment ensures that epidemics are lowered and also protects the future generation. However the health care system faces major challenges and in the case of the United States of America, the system suffers difficulties such as:

Cost inflation- obtaining medical care is costly and is fuelled by the wrong public perception of what the field can offer that is provided by the media. The public believes that the sector can perform miracles and thus there is no limit to the value of care and research which is worth the cost. The cost also rises due to the entrepreneurial zeal as technology is introduced to the system. The transition from manual to electronic gadgets in the sector has led to an increase in the efficiencies, money-saving and also error reduction; however, these gadgets are expensive, difficult to use and require professionals. This increases the cost of administration in the health care systems thus increasing the cost of obtaining care.

Lack of health insurance- many dwellers in the states lack medical insurance thus fail to obtain the necessary medical services and preventive care. People in some areas are poor and most will wait until they fall seriously sick before they can seek proper medical assistance (Johnstone & Ranken, 2004). This makes the process hard and even more expensive to cure and treat them as well as creating space for further contagion of infectious diseases.

Shortages of staff - few medical school graduates are recruited into primary care which is also limited by the few entries and institutions in the states. The number of registered nurses is also low due to age considerations. This means that the staff cannot provide enough or top-quality care to the patients as required. It also causes poor working conditions and it is tedious to the physicians who have to attend many patients as limited by the time and pay. Moreover, the primary care physicians earn less than the specialist and their numbers continue to dwindle each year due to faculty shortages and financial problems.

Obstacles in the rural regions- many of the registered nurses and physicians prefer to work in urban areas. The rural regions thus lack major facilities and few physicians choose to work in these regions due to low productivity and low incomes of the dwellers. People living in rural areas lack health insurance plans as compared to urban residents. Besides this, most rural dwellers have to travel many miles to obtain the necessary care while others choose to wait until they are seriously sick (Afo, Thomason & Karel, 2006). Hospitals in these regions also lack emergency wings and the drug stores are not well stocked causing the physicians to be always on call.

Ways that technology impacts health care

The impact of technology can be viewed based on the level of use that the technology achieves and the impact of the use on the cost of treating patients. Technology has had tremendous influence in the health care system including:

Increased efficiency- manual systems of record-keeping have been substituted for the electronic system thus saving time in management. Technology has enabled the development of a new procedure for the treatment of diseases; the expansion of the number of patients treated over time and also facilitated the development of new treatment for previously untreatable diseases and vaccines. Life expectancy has been increased and the speed has also been enhanced in the health care system.

            Reduced errors-human errors which could not be previously recognized and monitored can now be reflected using the available technology such as the use of computers. Errors relating to financing records are easily detected. Technology has enabled the assessment of patients and made it possible to conduct surgeries on patients who were considered to be too frail to operate.

Money-saving- the transfer of money is quick and easy when technology is applied. Technology has enhanced money-saving in the health sector through the production of faster patient recovery systems and shorter periods of patients stay in hospitals. It has also facilitated a faster flow of information within the sector reducing the number of health care problems thus saving time and money.

Health care at the international level has a great impact on the United States health care system through technological influence and research. Firstly, it facilitates for exchange and trade of medicinal products and also of innovations and inventions thus promoting health care in the states.  Secondly, it offers great opportunities for learning new and advanced methods to be applied in the sector. This is achieved through the flow and exchange of information through the sector and the acquisition of good treatment measures (Cassels & Janovsky, 2001).  It also facilitates outreach to regions that have not yet received medical care.

Ethical challenges

Ethical challenges faced may involve the waiting lists which impact on the health status of the patients causing psychological stress and inability to function properly. They lead to abuse of the scarce resources in hospitals like bed and also may lead to inequities in the health care system. Another ethical issue relates to access of services by the old, mentally and chronically ill which is influenced by the rejection of these components and lack of funding for their needs. Besides this is, the system faces shortages of physicians and staff in both rural and urban settings. This is influenced by the few faculties offering such courses and few graduates from these institutions thus limiting the number of employed practitioners.

            Medical errors also pose major concerns to the sector arising from human and machine breakdowns. These have serious ethical implications like the disclosure of such errors as well as trust accorded to the sector.  Other ethical issues related to obtaining informed people in the health care setting, research and the risks involved, substitution in the decision making where patients fail to come up with particular health care decision and surgical innovations and approval (Ebrahim & Anken, 2008).