Transportation for HIV Patients - Essay Example

Swot Analysis

            This involves analyzing the strengths and opportunities as well as the weaknesses and threats evident in the case in order to find possible remedies to the same (Murray-Webster, & William, 2011). This analysis aims at analyzing a crisis encountered by HIV patients who have difficulties accessing transportation.

Strengths

• A Health System Agency is a regional organization and has been set in place to take care of matters concerning HIV patients (Sherman, 2011).
• The coordinator of this agency as well as other social service workers provides social and emotional support to patients like Jeanne (Sherman, 2011).

Weaknesses

• The pharmacy is two miles away hence the patients who cannot afford to get there can still not walk.
• The taxicabs are very costly and a trip to the pharmacy is not covered by the Medicaid policy.
• The state of the ailing cannot allow them to drive even if they have their own vehicles.
• Their family and friends have abandoned patients like Jeanne (Sherman, 2011).

Opportunities

• Mary promises to find out whether there is a mail-order pharmacy, which accepts Medicaid. This will be effective since the patient will not have to go there to get the medication.
• Though unpromising, there are already known direct ways of transportation from volunteer programs, public transportation services, government agencies as well as social service reimbursement program (Sherman, 2011).
• Institution of transportation committee intends to have adequate monitoring of this matter.

Threats

• Accessing medication and medical attention is a necessity for patients.
• Other than the pharmacy problem, Jeanne could nevertheless require haulage to access another service such as banking, food, shopping together with accessing social support groups (Sherman, 2011)
• It is hard for the coordinator to construct a transportation program for each of the many HIV patients in the region.
• Local public transportation is limited in the region of seventeen counties, volunteer transportation varied greatly in availability whereas private transportation was available but very costly (Sherman, 2011)
• The committee lacked a possible immediate solution to the crisis other than acquiring millions in order to run a fleet of vehicles.

Cause and Effect Analysis

            Cause and effect analysis is helpful in various ways such as identifying the cause of a problem, identifying bottlenecks as well as the effect the problem causes. An illustration commonly referred to as Fishbone diagrams are critical in this analysis.

The problem

Transportation crisis for HIV patients

Transportation crisis    ____________________________

Factors involved

• HIV patients
• The Health System Agency personnel
• Medicaid
• Transport providers
• Medicine providers

Possible problems

Analysis of Diagram

Finding a long-term solution to this crisis is hard but also very essential. The quality of health, as well as the living standards of the patients, will continue to deteriorate if a solution is not found (Adler, 2012). The most likely remedy to the crisis is collaborative efforts by all the factors involved. This will ensure proper planning to find a solution. The medical providers may arrange the schedule of the patients to be in line with the transportation program. In addition, Medicaid should also cover some transportation needs of the patients and the government should work together with the health System agency personnel.