The high costs that are incurred in the delivery of treatment are among the factors that hinder effective delivery. Many healthcare institutions grapple with challenges in their efforts to offer affordable care without compromising the quality of treatment. As a result, the United States lags behind other nations regarding the cost and quality of care. Millions of Americans are still unable to access healthcare that is both affordable and of high quality (Burke & Ryan, 2014). A number of initiatives have been developed to address the poor quality and costly nature of healthcare in the United States. This essay examines the issue of healthcare quality and cost. Among other things, the essay explores the relationship between the cost of healthcare and quality and analyzes the initiatives that are aimed at addressing the cost of healthcare while improving quality.
Healthcare cost and quality
There appears to be a direct relationship between the cost of healthcare and quality. This means that for one to access quality healthcare, they must be able to afford the high cost that it comes with (Burke & Ryan, 2014). On the other hand, those who are unable to afford the quality care are forced to resort to care of substandard quality. The case of the US does not necessarily follow this relationship. While it spends huge amounts on healthcare compared to other countries, it is still unable to offer quality services to patients (Burke & Ryan, 2014). It is important to note that this situation is neither fixed nor permanent. There are a number of measures that the US can put in place to make medical services to be both affordable and of high quality. Nations in Europe have managed to achieve this. The US could borrow the practices adopted by these nations.
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Public and private involvement
The dire state of healthcare in the United States concerns both public and private entities. Various organizations have become involved in the effort to promote affordable and high quality healthcare. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is one of the government agencies committed to improving healthcare delivery in the country. The main role that this agency plays is to provide evidence which aids in transforming healthcare (AHRQ, n.d). This organization partners with other institutions in a bid to promote equity, affordability and the quality of healthcare in the US. The organization is also concerned with making medical services safer (AHRQ, n.d). The efforts of this organization are complemented by the initiatives developed by such private entities as The Joint Commission. As opposed to AHRQ, the Joint Commission is chiefly concerned with certification of healthcare providers and programs in the US (“About the Joint Commission”, n.d). It subjects the providers and programs to rigorous scrutiny to ensure that they meet set standards. The organization does this with the aim of improving the standards and cost of care in the country.
Initiatives to address cost and quality
There are various initiatives that are already in place which promise to address the cost and quality concerns in healthcare in the US. The Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) model is one of the initiatives that are delivering encouraging outcomes. Essentially, this model allows healthcare practitioners to partner to offer the best possible quality of care while making cost savings. Since 2011, 744 healthcare institutions have adopted the ACOs model and are delivering the benefits of the model to 23.5 million Americans (Gold, 2015). The ACOs model is the main initiative that is already delivering gains. There are a number of projected initiatives that also promise to improve the quality of care while keeping costs low. These include transforming how medical practitioners are pain in a manner that provides incentives and enhances accountability (Casey, n.d). Another projected initiative involves encouraging medical institutions to adopt cost saving measures such as offering services that are necessary. It is also advised that individuals need to be more active in demanding transparency and accountability from healthcare providers (Casey, n.d). When implemented, these measures will undoubtedly boost quality and lower costs simultaneously.
Implications for nurses
The issues of cost and quality in healthcare present implications for both staff and advanced practice nurses. Nurses have received blame for the poor quality of care reported in health institutions in the US (Ball et al., n.d). They appear to be unable to handle the demands of patients. If quality and cost are to be addressed, nurses will need to be in the forefront. They may have to change their attitudes and place their focus on the wellbeing of patients. Other than forcing nurses to adopt better attitudes, the question of cost and quality also present implications for nursing in that nurses will be charged with the mandate of implementing measures to reduce costs and improve quality. For instance, the ACOs model has been successful thanks in part to the role played by nurses (“The Role of Nurses”, n.d). When this model is rolled out across the country, nurses should ready themselves for its implementation.
In conclusion, the US still trails other nation as regards the quality and cost of medical care. Despite setting aside huge amounts for healthcare, the country still reports poor health and its healthcare system is overwhelmed. A number of measures have been shown to be effective in addressing the flaws in the system. The ACOs model is among these. There are also some initiatives that are yet to be adopted but are already promising to transform American healthcare. There is need for nurses to join forces with other practitioners to lower the amounts that patients incur as they seek treatment and to improve the quality of care offered to patients.
References
About the Joint Commission. (n.d). Retrieved 15th November 2016 from
https://www.jointcommission.org/about_us/about_the_joint_commission_main.aspx
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). (n.d). About AHRQ. Retrieved 15th November 2016 from http://www.ahrq.gov/cpi/about/index.html
Ball, J. E., Murrells, T., Rafferty, A. M., Morrow, E., & Griffiths, P. (2012). ‘Care Left
Undone’ During Nursing Shifts: Associations with Workload and Perceived Quality of Care. BMJ Quality & Safety. DOI: 10.1136/bmjqs-2012-001767
Burke, L. A., & Ryan, A. M. (2014). The Complex Relationship between Cost and Quality In US Health Care. Virtual Mentor, 16 (2), 124-130.
Casey, E. (n.d). Transforming Healthcare Delivery: A Pathway to Affordable, High Quality
Care in America. Retrieved 15th November 2016 from
http://www.bcbs.com/blog/transforming-healthcare.html
Gold, J. (2015). Accountable Care Organizations, Explained. Retrieved 15th November 2016
From http://khn.org/news/aco-accountable-care-organization-faq/
The Role of Nurses in Affordable Care Organizations. (n.d). Retrieved 15th November 2016 from http://www.naqc.org/Main/Resources/NursesRole-AccountableCareOrg.pdf
