Strategic Planning and Marketing-James Shiplet

This article from the US - Small Business Administration is a great way to understand marketing a business whether it’s a large Healthcare Corporation or a small business such as a physician in private practice.  Marketing plans include everything from understanding who you’re marketing too and your viable spot in that identified  market, to how you intend to target that market. Your marketing budget should be huge a component of your marketing plan as it will outline the costs of how you are going to achieve the rest of your marketing plan. Large healthcare corporations have the funds to hire a marketing firm or even hire a marketing director; however, for small practices there are resources available from the SBA to guide them through the process of writing a marketing plan and developing a marketing budget.  (US-SBA 2013)

Marketing plans are reviewed during the annual budget planning process. However, when a hospital launches a new service in between budgets they take the time to revisit their original plan and decide how much funds from the marketing budget will now be allocated to market the new service.

It takes some time to develop a marketing plan, but that time is well spent for any organization because it delineates how they will associate with their customers.

                                                                       References

Developing a Marketing Plan. (2013). In United States Small Business Administration. Retrieved

        June 30, 2013, from http://www.sba.gov/content/developing-marketing-plan

Module # 3 Communication and Teamwork

Teamwork is very important for a work environment so everybody can work together to accomplish similar goals. Sometimes in the work field titles and ranks get in the way where some people feel more important than others and don’t help one another with certain duties. This article I found title “CNAs and Nurses- can we all just get along”? , this author gives some comments on what a few CNAs had to say about their work environment working with nurses. One CNA said “It takes communication. If we are not able to get to something that a patient really needs urgently (like a walk or to be turned), we should at least tell the nurse that we are busy so she can delegate elsewhere or take care of the patient herself” (Leekley,2010).

Communication is very important especially from a manger or supervisor; communication is for receiving orders, instructions, and direction from above. (Liebler & McConnell, 2012). The author gives 8 tips for creating a "friction-free" team of nurses and nursing assistants. One tip the author mention is to be willing to listen. People who choose to work in nursing tend to be sensitive to the needs of others. They are expected to be warm and caring people. Yet at the same time, they are expected never to make a mistake and to work as tirelessly as machines. It's a lot to ask of people-to be kind and sensitive and still get all the work done quickly! But, this is the goal for everyone in the nursing field. Help your nursing team by encouraging them to talk to you when they are stressed and by being willing to share your feelings with them. No one knows better what the stresses of your job are than the other nurses and nursing assistants! (Leekley,2010)

An employee’s particular mindset is continually reinforced by his or her work group (Leiebler & McConnell,2012). That’ s the reason why I feel like teamwork, motivation and communication is very important in the healthcare field because it makes patient care easier when you working together as a team.

References

Leekley, Linda. (10 Feb, 2012). Ezinearticles
http://ezinearticles.com/?CNAs-and-Nurses---Cant-We-All-Just-Get-Along?&id=3737014

Liebler, J., and C. McConnell. Management principles for health professionals. 6th edition. Ontario: Jones & Bartlett Publishers, 2012. Print.

Strategic Planning and Marketing

Learning Module #4 – Strategic Planning and Marketing – Beverly Braswell

Businesses that are successful have found a way to meet the needs of their customers that the competition cannot meet. Marketing requires constant developing of products and services that will provide better value (“competitive advantage”) (Riley, 2012). The problem is with the changing environment where businesses operate. So businesses must adapt to changes in the environment and make decisions about how to change the marketing in order to succeed. This process of adapting and decision-making is known as marketing planning (Riley, 2012).

Strategic planning is the overall direction of the business and how it should reach its goals. It is concerned with marketing; but it also involves decision-making about production and operations, finance, human resource management and other business issues (Riley, 2012). A business must consider how the planning will affect the entire company not just the front line product.

The objective of a strategic plan is to set the direction of a business and create its shape so that the products and services it provides meet the overall business objectives (Riley, 2012).

Marketing has a key role because it is the avenue from the business to the consumer. How the business plans to attract consumers is the key to the success of the business. It can be a simple task for a small business; or overwhelming for a large business with multiple products to market. Larger businesses are going to require a more developed marketing department.

To be successful the business will need to have a competitive advantage of others. Create a strategy that everyone will buy into. Make sure resources are available and notify stakeholders of the plan. Finally be sure to measure the performance of the strategy to make sure it is reaching the goal of the business.

References

Riley, J. (2012, September 23). Strategic Management and the Link to Marketing. Retrieved from Tutor 2 U: http://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/strategy_marketing.htm

 

 

Communication and Teamwork

James Shiplet-Teamwork and Communication

Healthcare providers work in a multifaceted environment. The care of patients in critical care areas, such as intensive care units, emergency departments, surgery, and labor and delivery units, require the constant involvement from individuals with varying professional backgrounds and education. Physicians, nurses, surgeons, respiratory therapists, pharmacist, technicians etc. need to work with each other to deliver expert care in the safest method possible. Although, when these highly qualified professionals learn their skills in their formative education years, scarcely any attention is spent on roles of other members of the patient care team.  And, all too often they don’t have a clear understanding of each other’s roles and responsibilities as part of the healthcare team.  The Institutes of Medicine released their sentinel report in 2000, “To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System” and soon after that the Joint Commission on Accreditation for Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) began advocating team training.  What I liked about this article is it addresses the human error dilemma by using the Crew Resource Management (CRM) method of team training which was taken from the airliner industry, the SBAR method of giving critical concise information to physicians about their patients when they are in a crisis.  CRM education programs encompass team training sessions, simulations, after action debriefings, and measurements of the patient care teams’ performance.  SBAR stands for situation (what happened), background (a short review of the patient), assessment (what you think the problem is) and recommendation (the treatment that you think the patient needs to get better).  With these two items alone many adverse patient incidents can be avoided.

References

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1765783/pdf/v013p00i85.pdf

Module #3-Teamwork

http://ezinearticles.com/?Team-Building-Programs-to-Improve-Teamwork-and-Communication&id=7200436

Teamwork Leads to Effective Communication

Bianca Zinno

Module 3

According to the author, team work is defined as a group of people working together to reach a common goal (Rahman,2012).  There are many benefits to team work. These include creative enhancement, new friendships, a sense of accomplishment, and problem resolution (Rahman,2012).  We use teamwork from childhood, to adulthood, in many situations in our lives (Rahman,2012).  An example of this is coaches, parents and teachers working with us as youths to encourage us to work towards a common goal with our peers. Good team work is a product of good communication. There are three elements to effective communication. People have to be willing to talk and share information, be understanding, and be an active listener (Rahman,2012).  Many problems with team work  in the workplace are results of poor communication. Co-workers need to learn to work together and resolve conflicts through good communication in order to be effective team players (Rahman,2012).  A team can never reach its full potential with good communication skills (Rahman,2012).  Different team building exercises and events can strengthen the communication within a group of co workers. The more co workers communicate, the more they will being to trust each other, resulting in better teamwork in the work place.

Works cited:

Rahman, Nadia. (2012, Jan 2).Teamwork Leads to Effective Communication. Ezine Articles.. Retrieved from  www.ezine.com

Communication and Teamwork

Medical and Nursing students must practice communication and teamwork strategies in order to work together effectively and prevent errors. Poor communication and teamwork while dealing with a patient’s health can result in major medical errors and poor quality of care. In fact, a study by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations reports ineffective communication is a major factor in 60 percent of sentinel events – events that can cause loss of life or limb (Lambert, 2013). Texas A & M have took notice and require communication and teamwork courses in their curricula before a nurse is allowed to graduate. Jack Moreland, Ph.D., M.S.N., RN, TAMHSC-College of Nursing assistant professor. “Although each discipline is great at speaking the lingo in their field and carrying out individual tasks at hand, often times there is a disconnect among the specific health professions, and communication is not received by all (Lambert, 2013).”

Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety (TeamSTEPPS™) is a program that teaches practical skills hospitals can use to create collaboration among professionals, resolve conflict, information sharing, and in the end provide better patient care. It is composed of four teachable skills: leadership, mutual support, situation monitoring and communication through easy-to-follow modules (Lambert, 2013). Students learn TeamSTEPPS™ strategies during class time. These strategies are then practiced in the healthcare setting when clinical rotations are performed in local hospitals. Communication and teamwork tools, like TeamSTEPPS™, provide powerful mechanisms organizations can utilize to improve the sharing of information across the entire health profession, ultimately reducing errors and leading to safer and more efficient patient care,” Dr. Moreland said (Lambert, 2013).

TeamSTEPPS™ is utilized at many health care facilities. It really opens the door to effective communication. With effective communication comes effective patient care. Quality patient care is our ultimate goal in the health care profession and we should strive to communicate and work together to reach that goal. We should provide our patients the best care possible while limiting errors while they are in our care. Besides good communication makes a pleasant atmosphere and leaves no question while in the process of taking care of others.

http://news.tamhsc.edu/2013/04/15/teamwork-among-health-care-providers-optimixes-patient-care/

References

Lambert, H. (2013, April 15). Teamwork Among Health Care Providers Optimizes Patient Care. Retrieved from News Texas A&M Health Science Center: http://news.tamhsc.edu/2013/04/15/teamwork-among-health-care-providers-optimixes-patient-care/

Healthcare Management Strategies

This article is about healthcare management strategies and the three things that matter to healthcare practitioners   They are, managing cost, competency & staffing, plus revenue.  Healthcare is in the news a lot these days due to the passage of the "The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" otherwise known as Obamacare.  The costs of healthcare are one of the biggest problems in the US. Healthcare entities have to control the cost of supplies to remain competitive. Strategies to do this include regulating the processes and supplies  They have to pay for qualified personnel, weighing the benefits of lower paid personnel without the same skill level of personnel with proven competence. And they have to recognize that the costs of making sure their facilities pass all state and federal standards, as well as keeping staff trained so they maintain their certifications, are lower than being fined for violations of each. Most of the people working in the healthcare field are certified, but that doesn't mean they're competent to provide care or perform other duties. Healthcare are requiring minimum standards that all employees must reach based on their job classification. Tracking and evaluating employees mistakes and positive outcomes not only helps healthcare entities learn how to minimize errors, but the good numbers gives them something to brag about. Healthcare staffing is hard to manage because it is mandated by state and federal standards. Healthcare entities must come up with creative ways of managing staff, while making sure they have enough staff to adequately provide care. Sound financial strategies may include not providing services that another facility provides, and concentrating on the services that the facility can do well and with more efficiency. Another revenue strategy is to put more effort into providing services that are cost-effective and offer more and better-paying outpatient procedures.

http://www.ehow.com/way_5427838_health-care-management-strategies.html

Module 2-Management Strategies--Implementing Change

As health care leaders implementing changes in policies and protocols is a constant task.  Michelle Bennett, a senior staff nurse in a pediatric unit in the United Kingdom writes an article in Nursing Magazine-UK about the process of implementing new clinical guidelines in her unit concerning pediatric sedation.

 Bennett uses a democratic leadership style and organizes teams of nurses to help her in the process.  She clearly communicates information regarding the changes and why she needs their participation.  By doing this she motivates the team's participation to accomplish the goals.  Bennett feels that the best approach to implement the changes is to follow the Lewin Change Model which was developed by Kurt Lewin.  Lewin (1951) describes the change process in three stages:  1) Unfreezing (prepare and plan for the change), 2) Experiencing the change and 3) Re-freezing (solidify the change). 

Bennett's plan of action includes a ten step process:  1) Identify the need for change (the unfreezing stage in Lewin Change Model).  Changes needed to occur with the unstructured sedation practices causing extended length of stay due to drug withdrawal symptoms.  Bennett discussed her concerns with her colleagues and found that they all had the same concerns and agreed that change needed to occur.  2)  Establish the views of her colleagues and team members which is vital for effective change. 3) Perform a comprehensive literature review to provide evidence based research data backing up their decision for change.  4) Share results and obtain colleague input into compiling draft guidelines.  5)  Provide training and information resources in a flexible manner that best suits the department.  6)  Compiling draft guidelines that are clear, easy to understand and follow.  7)  Implementing draft guidelines.  This phase represents the experiencing the change in the Lewin Change Model and the guidelines are put into action.  8)  Review and amend guidelines.  Bennett identifies this phase as the re-freezing stage in the Lewin Change Model where the newly implemented guidelines are now monitored, evaluated for effectiveness and reinforced.  9)  Implementing amended guidelines.  Bennett communicates with team members and together fine tune any changes.  10)  Carrying out an audit.  This will help staff provide improved patient care and services.

As Bennett describes her process of implementing the changes in her department, it is clear that managers need to have a clear plan of action to successfully meet the goals of the department.



References

Bennett, M. (2003). Applied management. Implementing new clinical guidelines: the manager as agent of change. Nursing Management - UK, 10(7), 20-23.

 Lewin (1951) Field Theory in Social Science. New York, Harper and Row.

Module 2- Management Strategies

Motivational strategies are very important to individuals in the working field. People should be rewarded for their behavior that is acceptable, and which can also enhance performance and motivate them. This article was very interesting to me title reads “Friendly workplace linked to longer life”. Researchers at Tel Aviv University found that people who felt that they had the support of their colleagues and generally positive social interactions at work were less likely to die over a 20-year period than those who reported a less friendly work environment (O'Connor, 2011). Studies have proven that getting along with your colleagues at work may do more than boost your productivity, and can extend your life.

A stressful job can cause a person to become mentally, physically, and emotionally unstable. The manger should have some type of organizational behavior to see how people act in the organizations to improve employee’s behavior. One thing they noticed was that the risk was only affected by a person’s relationship with his or her peers, and not with that person’s supervisors. The way people viewed their relationships with their bosses had no impact on mortality (O’Connor, 2011). I certainly believe that a lack of a relationship with co-workers over a period of time can cause a person to be unhappy and withdrawal from their workplace. You can live longer if you are enjoying life and it’s filled with happiness.

References

O'Connor,Anahad. ( 2011, 5 Aug) Friendly workplace lined to longer life.
              The New York Times

Retrieved from
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/08/05/friendly-workplace-linked-to-longer-life/

Module 2-Healthcare Managment Strategies-Turning employees into problem solvers

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6279.html

The Institute of Medicine published To Err is Human ten years ago (Hanna, 2010). The report caused medical mistakes to be in the spotlight and become a hot topic (Hanna, 2010). We all make mistakes, but it is an important part of management to recognize those mistakes, and come up with solutions so that the mistakes are not repeated. Medical mistakes cost nine to fifteen billion dollars annually (Hanna, 2010). So what is management to do to decrease these numbers?

According to the article, management needs to prompt their employees to speak up (Hanna, 2010). If an employee notices something that is a potential mistake, tell a manager, so that they can address the problem and find a solution. In 2010, Harvard did a study to see what types of tactics management could use to encourage employees to speak up. According to the study, patient safety campaigns are a good start (Hanna, 2010). Instituting these types of campaigns increased the number of employees to speak up by five percent (Hanna, 2010). In addition to this, managers that “practiced what they preached’, and reported problems themselves had numbers higher than this (Hanna, 2010).

The next step is for management to evaluate the types of problems that are happening, and determine if they are repetitive problems that have an easy solution. Evaluation is key in management, and can be helpful in solving a multitude of problems (Hanna, 2010).

The last thing that the author talks about is recognizing what she calls “front line employees”(Hanna, 2010). These are employees that are willing to go the extra mile to help their department limit the amount of mistakes they make. These employees are not perfect, and may make mistakes themselves, but are willing to take criticism, and problem solve when needed. These employees also have watchful eyes, and report things to management that should be reported (Hanna, 2010). They avoid near-miss situations, and help management when necessary.

Works Cited

Hanna, J. (2010, Aug 30). Havard Business School. Retrieved from hbs.edu.

Learning Module 1: Achieving Health Care

Healthcare in the United States is changing constantly with different reforms from different ideas of the president and Congress. I found this article about how achieving health care reform and how physicians can help.  There are two threats in particular that put reform at risk: conflicting doctrines (regarding the creation of a new public insurance option and government support for comparative-effectiveness studies) and opposition to change among some current stakeholders (Fisher,2009). The good thing about a physician position they have the chance to wait and see what happens or to lead the change our country needs. The article explains that physicians should first help to create a shared vision that could overcome doctrinal divides — and bring providers together to create a system better aligned both with public needs and with providers' fundamental interests and values (Fisher,2009).

I think the Healthcare reform is a challenge for anyone that has the opportunity to make changes because you will never be able to satisfy everybody in the U.S with different Acts for Healthcare.
If stakeholders can agree on such a vision of health care reform, perhaps we could shift our focus from the conflict over whether a new public plan should be created to a more constructive insistence that all health plans, whether public or private. However, neither physicians nor anyone else on the front lines can improve care much on their own. Their most important source of support for improvement is the third level described by the IOM — the health care organizations that house almost all clinical microsystems and can ensure coordination among them (Fisher,2009). The article explains that physicians can help by their support and help to develop integrated systems of care. So I feel like the U.S. Healthcare can become better over time if the physicians and congress, and legislation become one.

Reference

Fisher, Elliot. (2009, June, 9) Achieving Health Care Reform-How Physicians Can Help

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp0903923

Leadership in Today's Changing Healthcare Environment

 While rising costs have driven the healthcare industry to think outside the box, it is only by having good leadership that this can be accomplished. It is one thing to be able to see the overall plan for the future, but another to be able to make it happen. Good leaders are multifaceted in their ability foresee the future or at least the direction they perceive the future to be (Meyer & Ron, 2013). Another characteristic in a good leader is their ability to be flexible and have the capability to change directions when the time comes to make the needed adjusts to adapt to the environment of the present. Good leaders also know that they need to provide the tools needed to help those managers and others in the leadership roles be able to accomplish their tasks at hand. Some of these important tools are time, resources, and the authority to get things done (Meyer & Ron, 2013). This article is about the new model of Accountable Care Organizations which include Medicare and Medicaid payer bases. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services define an ACO as "an organization of healthcare providers that agrees to be accountable for the quality, cost, and overall care of Medicare beneficiaries who are enrolled in the traditional fee-for-service program who are assigned to it (Meyer & Ron, 2013).”  This is a tremendous undertaking by an organization, so many choose to organize affiliations with other facilities in order to incorporate all the needed services in order to make this happen. Of course by doing so, they must research, plan, and make wise decisions about who to affiliate with and when in order to accomplish these goals and stay within their focused directional vision. As long as schema within all the affiliated entities are the same in general, they will be able to stay on track and provide all the services needed without great expenditure, which is a cost savings provision as well (Buchbinder and Shanks, 2011).

References

Buchbinder, S., and Shanks, N. Introduction to health care management. 2^nd edition. Burlington,MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning, 2011. Print.

Meyer, M., & Ron, A. (2013). Leadership is the key to a successful accountable care organization. American Journal of Managed Care, Retrieved from http://www.ajmc.com/conferences/NAMCP_2012/Leadership-Is-the-Key-to-a-Successful-Accountable-Care-Organization/

http://www.ajmc.com/conferences/NAMCP_2012/Leadership-Is-the-Key-to-a-Successful-Accountable-Care-Organization/

Management Strategies

Planning and evaluation is always at the front line of health care today. Take information as an example. In the past there were log books and paper charts to keep track of patients, patient’s medications, and test results. Today there is extensive planning on the best way to collect patient information and also great planning in the evaluation of this information. Over the last decade, pharmaceutical companies have been aggregating years of research and development data into medical databases, while payers and providers have digitized their patient records (Kayyali, Kuiken, & Knott, 2013). Recent technical advances have made it easier to collect and analyze information from multiple sources—a major benefit in health care, since data for a single patient may come from various payers, hospitals, laboratories, and physician offices (Kayyali, Kuiken, & Knott, 2013). With these changes it is important of health-care stakeholders to compile and exchange information to keep up with the needs of patients and quality of service.

While health-care costs may be paramount in big data’s rise, but now care is based more on evidence based need. Physicians have traditionally used their judgment when making treatment decisions, but in the last few years there has been a move toward evidence-based medicine, which involves systematically reviewing clinical data and making treatment decisions based on the best available information (Kayyali, Kuiken, & Knott, 2013). Although the health-care industry has been the last to join the big data—partly because of concerns about patient confidentiality—it could soon catch up. If stakeholders are not on board they can find themselves left behind in the healthcare field.  Patient data is of great value due to it shows the trends and needs of today’s healthcare patients while provided much needed data for physicians and hospitals.

References

Kayyali, B., Kuiken, S. V., & Knott, D. (2013, April). The Big-Data Revolution in US Health Care: Accelerating Value and Innovation. Retrieved from McKinsey Insights on Health Systems: http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/health_systems/the_big-data_revolution_in_us_health_care

http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/health_systems/the_big-data_revolution_in_us_health_care

U.S. Health Care

Health Care in the United States is undergoing drastic changes as a result of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  One of the main goals of health reform is to expand medical coverage to more Americans.

One way it is accomplishing this is by allowing parents to carry their young adult children on their medical plans up to the age of 26.  The law also allows young adult children who are married, attending school, not living with their parents and eligible to enroll in their own employer’s plan to continue coverage under thier parents medical plan (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2013).  However, one stipulation is that they must not be financially dependent on their parents if they are not attending school nor have employment.  

The whole purpose is to increase the access to more people and reduce the amount of uninsured Americans.  An article published by New England Journal of Medicine reported that since the law took into effect, an increase of emergency room visits increased by 3.1%.  In a one year period it was calculated that $147 million in medical costs were now covered by newly insured young adults (Harris, Ph.D, et al., 2013).  Emergency room care is very expensive and increasing the coverage to young adult children will save money for both the parent and the adult child.  

The data shows, in at least one area of health reform, it is helping to increase coverage to young adults who otherwise would have gone without medical coverage needed to seek emergency care.

References

Harris, Ph.D, K., Finegold, PhD, K., Kellermann, M.D., M.P.H., A., Endelman, B.Sc.Adv., L., Sommers, M.D., PhD, B. D., & Mulcahy, PhD, M.P.P., A. (2013, June 07). Insurance Coverage of Emergency Care for Young Adults under Health Reform. Retrieved from www.nejm.org: www.nejm.org

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2013, June 7). Young Adult Coverage. Retrieved from HealthCare.gove: HealthCare.gov

EHR Incentives

US Healthcare Systems

Module 1 – Article Summary

Jon Reed

Conn, J. (2013). Riding the wave

            This article deals with the government’s requirements for electronic health records (EHR), and how different health care providers are taking vastly different approaches. Some providers are striving to get to and stay on the cutting edge of information technology (IT), while others are still using paper records with the vast majority of providers left somewhere in between. One health group in California which includes a 409 bed hospital and multiple providers working out of multiple facilities plans on implementing a bar-code medication administration system and setting up a data warehouse for patient records, which should enable it to track patients as they move through the system, manage the overall health of its patient population and learn from its experiences (Conn, 2013). The hospital also plans to add a patient portal, which it sees as key to involving patients in their own care and a crucial part in improving population health while lowering overall healthcare costs (Conn, 2013). I thought this related to the article that James posted about our ranking in population health.  Some analysts are predicting a huge explosion in IT spending over the next few years from providers doing more of what this California provider is doing. On the flip side the more pessimistic analysts are predicting that these expenditures are strictly due to the government incentive programs that have already spent most of the funds.  Many are predicting that as soon as the government mandates are met that the care providers will turn to making all of the budget cuts possible due to lower reimbursement checks causing them to operate on thinner margins (Conn, 2013). Who knows what will happen in the next few years as the government mandates for providers and the government insurance programs go into effect.  From this article I gathered that there are a lot of predictions, but no one really knows. The one thing that I think we can all be sure of is that there are changes coming to our field, and we all hope they are good ones.

Reference

Conn, J. (2013). Riding the wave. Modern Healthcare,43(20), 6-7.

Retrieved from 

http://ehis.ebscohost.com.zeus.tarleton.edu:81/ehost/delivery?sid=f33f45fe-0b82-   4c9c-b11b-   http://ehis.ebscohost.com.zeus.tarleton.edu:81/ehost/detail?sid=f33f45fe-0b82-4c9c-b11b-b3195a4388f5%40sessionmgr112&vid=4&hid=6&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=87693406 

US Health Care

      It is almost unbelievable that there are that many countries who are doing better than the U.S. in the healthcare realm. The infant and adult mortality rates really make you think about whats going on, and mainly how are we as a country going to fix it. I really like the part where it mentions guarding households from destitution from medical expenses.  In my opinion that is one of our biggest problems that needs to be solved.  First the average American family has to budget low on groceries to afford some kind of insurance, and then their bank accounts are wiped out with one little emergency.  I wonder how in depth that study went and if it looked into the causes of death in all those mortality rates.  I am not down playing the study, but I would have a few more questions.  In these other countries how many of them have soda and candy available on every corner? How many of them have all you can eat buffets at a high percentage of restaurants.  What does the average families normal diet look like, and how much stress is placed on the bread winner at their place of employment?  Are most of the families struggling to make ends meet, or do they have a decent amount of disposable income?  With all that said I think my biggest question is, how does the lifestyle of these mortality rates compare from country to country.  Again, just some questions to further understand the numbers.

US Healthcare

US Healthcare

The World Health Report 2000, Health Systems: Improving Performance, ranked the U.S. health care system 37th in the world, a result that has been discussed frequently during the current debate on U.S. health care reform and the passage of the PCAA. Evidence shows that 36 other countries perform better than the US in ensuring the health of their residents. The framework of the WHO rankings proposed that health systems should be assessed by comparing the extent to which public health and medical care were contributing to serious social objectives; such as improving health, decreasing health disparities, guarding households from destitution due to increasing medical expenses, and providing services that are responsive and that respect the dignity of patients.

Many people the U.S. health arena claim that international comparison is not useful because of the uniqueness of the United States.  With that said Murray; etal. stated in 2010, “It is hard to ignore that in 2006, the United States was number 1 in terms of health care spending per capita but ranked 39th for infant mortality, 43rd for adult female mortality, 42nd for adult male mortality, and 36th for life expectancy. These facts have fueled a question now being discussed in academic circles, as well as by government and the public: Why do we spend so much to get so little?

                                                                     Reference

Murry, C., Phil, D., & Frenk, J. (2010, January 14). Ranking 37th — Measuring the Performance

          of the U.S. Health Care System. In The New England Journal of Medicine. Retrieved  

         June 4, 2013, from http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp0910064