What would happen if you could shop for healthcare the same as for groceries or clothing? Need a hip replacement? Catch the shoppers in the Sunday paper to check out which doctor or hospital has got one on sale. Or, go online to comparison shop the local doctors and compare their prices. Customize your services by picking and choosing suggested tests and medications. Or, what if a visit to the doctor was like buying a major appliance? Get the product, but refuse the upgrades and extra service agreement. You have all the information and have a choice in the types of tests and procedures and can negotiate prices based on the competition. Sound unreal? Well, that’s one of the possible solutions to the health care mess suggested by Maggie Fox of ABC News in her report, "US health care: It’s officially a mess, institute says.”
Fox reports what the Institute of Medicine found in a recent report: Over $750 billion wasted by the U.S. healthcare system in unnecessary services, administrative costs, fraud and other problems. What was more shocking was their position that 75,000 patients who died would have lived had they been given the type of services available in states with the best healthcare systems.
Is the U.S. ready to shift to a healthcare service model similar to banks and gas stations? Not hardly. But as the report suggests, neither can it continue with the status quo. Her report covers some interesting dilemmas and suggested solutions. While these may be future initiatives on a broad scale, there may be some things healthcare providers can consider in the short term or put in strategic plans for 2013 and beyond.
- Back to basics. The report stated that despite breakthroughs in improving health care, half of all healthcare providers neglect to properly wash their hands before moving from one patient to the next. When something as basic as hand washing is overlooked, there’s no wonder healthcare costs are going up. The report suggested infections caused by bacteria spread by improper hygiene may cause thousands of infections and deaths each year.
- Corrective and Preventive Action Plan. Healthcare can take a page from Total Quality Management (TQM) principles and look for the root cause of problems instead of fixing symptoms. Fox suggests organizations “ruthlessly” track down the cause of problems to fix them forever.
- Get health care solutions to patients faster. New medications can take painfully long before they get to patients who need them. Also, there may be more than one effective treatment for medical conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes or heart disease. A change in diet, nutrition and exercise are powerful tools combined with proper treatment and medication to treat some major health conditions.
The report stated two main problems in solving the mess: Coordination and the exploding cost of health care. There are so many new health care initiatives, information and clinical technologies that it is difficult to keep up. What’s lacking is information and training for healthcare providers and the incentive to apply new procedures. While some new initiatives save money, more options can drive up the cost of total healthcare systems. If the industry isn’t careful about planning and holding down costs, the entire healthcare system can become too expensive for anyone to access or afford.
So, is the next step pharmaceutical vending machines and extreme couponing for mammograms and well-baby visits? Not so fast. More transparency regarding rates and procedures may help patients make more informed decisions, with the help of their provider, about the best and most affordable course of treatment.
Image by photostock / freedigitalphotos.net
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