1. Standards of Evaluation
Examine health care delivery in the United States from a personal
perspective….INTRODUCTIONThe health care delivery in the United States is the point of
discussion in this essay which is being examined from my own personal perspective. I will
assess my health plan which is Medicare health plan in terms of quality, cost, access and
continuity of health care in the United States. There are some aspects of my health plan
which need major or minor adjustments while some aspects are quite efficient. For example
my health plan in terms of cost is overwhelming as the monthly deductions that are made
from my salary are more than what I can afford given our economy. Health plans are easier
ways of paying for one’ s own medical care and there are a variety of health plans to choose
from provided that one is insured. These health plans may include: Medicare Advantaged
plans, Medi-Cal Managed Care plans and among others (California Department of Managed
Health Care, 2008).Without doubt health care plans are of great importance to me and my
family since medical care is generally so expensive in most parts of the world and especially
in the United States. Without these medical plans some medical services would be
impossibility for me and my family to get, the major medical service being surgery. There is
no way one can have a surgery in the United States without having a health insurance cover
unless one pays for it in terms of cash directly. This has led to many people in the United
States dying or being disabled because they could not get surgery at the right time. Had the
right health systems been in place, less of these deaths or disabilities would have occurred.
In order to examine the health care delivery in The United States, some aspects of health
plan are going to be assessed.Health plan in terms of qualityIn terms of quality my health
care plan is relatively poor. When I go for a medication attention in any hospital in the
United States I find that the nurses who serve me are not efficient in terns of giving care to
me as a patient. Sometimes am given the wrong medication or just given pain killers for the
pain. At the reception one has to queue for quite a long time before getting treatment from a
doctor. In aIDition the nurses or sometime the doctor are rude to us patients when we ask
particular questions. These nurses only give medical attention to other patients while
leaving some who do not seem like they need immediate attention.In other cases race has
been a key player in the providence of health care where the minority groups are denied
health care although they are insured. This fact is evidenced by a report Davis, et al (2006)
where it reported that the United States was ranked the last in other aspect of quality in the
health care system. It performed poorly in terms of giving care equitably, safely and
efficiently. Compared to other countries, Americans have the highest rate of receiving
2. wrong medications or doses and more likely go receive the wrong results after a lab test
(Davis et al, 2006).The quality of health plans can be improved by the government training
the nurses or doctors in patient handling or by hiring qualified medical staff.Health plan in
terms of costThe cost of having health coverage in the United States is very expensive and
especially to low income earners like us. There are monthly deductions that are made on
one’ s salary in order to pay for the medical care. My health plan is very expensive because
after the monthly deductions are made, my salary remains minimal and not enough for me
and my family. This has forced me to get two jobs in order to support my family since we
cannot do without medical care even if we wanted to. The high costs of insurance can be
attributed to the fact that the United States spends so much money on health care systems
(Woolhandler, 2003). It devotes a greater percentage of its national income to health than
any country but it is not getting the value for its money (Davis et al, 2006).For every service
that one gets from the medical doctors a fee called co-pay (California Department of
Managed Health, 2008) is paid which is quite expensive for the ordinary citizens.The cost of
health care in the United State is a major factor that makes many American not to get
medical care. The low income people are the most disadvantaged when it come to medical
care. These rates that are charged for every health cover have to be reduced for every
American to be able to access health care.Health plan in terms of continuity of careWhen a
doctor or hospital leaves my health plan, under certain circumstances I may be able to see
the doctor or visit the hospital and this is what is called continuity of care. In terms of
continuity of care my health plan is equally poor. This is because a doctor or hospital may
just decide to leave my health plan due to some reasons and am forced to seek medication
attention else where and with another doctor. Changing doctors and hospitals every time
my health plan is discontinued is really an inconvenience to me because one can only get
continuity of care if one has certain kind of health problem or conditions such as acute
conditions, serious chronic condition, pregnancy or terminal illnesses (California
Department of Managed Health Care, 2008).The health plan officials should see to it that a
doctor or hospital continue to give health care to its patients even if they discontinue with
that particular health plan since they will affect greatly the patient if he/she does not qualify
for continuity of care.Health plan in terms of accessThis aspect of my health plan is also
ranked fairly as compared to the other three aspects. This position is given by the fact that I
and my family do not usually have a regular doctor every time we need medical attention so
we have too change doctors all the time. I sometimes cannot access medical attention
because that care is very expensive for my health plan to cover it. In aIDition to that doctors
may be absent or late in providing for medical care services.A research conducted by Lasser
et al (2006) in her report concluded that United States residents are less able to access care
than Canadians. The report states that the US respondents that were interviewed were less
likely to have a regular doctor, more likely to have unmet health needs and more likely to
forego needed medicines as compared to Canadians. This report shows how the US is
dragging in providing the best health care for its citizens.This inaccessibility to health care
can be improved by providing regular doctors and by working out a health plan that will
look out for the uninsured since they are more affected by inaccessibility of health
care.ConclusionThe United States need some serious health care reforms in order for it to
3. compete with other countries like Canada and Europe in terms of providing efficient health
care to its citizens. Looking at some of the researches that were conducted by various
people or organizations, United States did not fare well when ranked with other countries
despite it using a lot of resources in health care systems.Every aspect that I used to rank my
health plan either did poorly or fair which shows how bad the situation is with the health
care systems in the United States. Urgent changes need to be done in order to avoid so many
deaths that occur due to poor providence of health care. This can be achieved by forming an
efficient health plan for all Americans.ReferencesHoeksema, J. (2011). Taking steps to
control costs in the OR. Association of Operating RoomNurses .AORN Journal, 94(6), S79-84;
quiz S85-6. doi:10.1016/j.aorn.2011.09.021Lasser, K. E., Himmelstein, D. U., & Woolhandler,
S. (2006). Access to care, health status, andhealth disparities in the united states and
canada: Results of a cross-national population-based survey. American Journal of Public
Health,96 (7), 1300-7. Retreved April 4th 2012 from
http://search.proquest.com/docview/215083453?accountid=45049California Department
of Managed Care (2008). Continuity of Care. Retrieved April 4th 2012from
http://www.hmohelp.ca.gov/dmhc_consumer/br/br_continuity.aspx.Davis, K., et al. (2006).
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: An Update on the Quality of AmericanHealth Care Through the
Patient’ s Lens. The Commonwealth Fund. Retrieved April 4th, 2012 from
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Publications/Fund-
Reports/2006/Apr/Mirror– Mirror-on-the-Wall– An-Update-on-the-Quality-of-American-
Health-Care-Through-the-Patients-Le.aspxPlace your order now…………..
