In order for healthcare to be effective, the services provided need to be in line with the needs of the population. Since the American population is aging, the healthcare needs of the country have changed significantly, meaning that more emphasis should be placed in geriatric care (Kelly-Barton, 2019). According to a study by the health policy institute, 20 percent of the American population would comprise of people over the age of 65 years. This demographic shift has policy and budgetary implications for both institutions and the government. In this context, the population in Pembroke Pines, Florida is no exception as the demographic trends indicate that the population is aging consistently. In a population of 12,338, 17 percent of the population is made up of people over the age of 65 ( American Fact Finder Community Facts , 2019). In addition, the media age in the region is 76 years. Furthermore, 35 percent of the demographic is comprised of women, while the remaining 65 percent is made up of men. Based on these statistics, planning and budgeting for geriatric care is of paramount importance for the residence of the region.
Geriatric Care in Pembroke Pines
Since the median age of the population is 76 years, it can be assumed that the population will need geriatric care from the age of 65 to 76. From the mid-1900, there was a demographic shift whereby the baby boomer generation started aging. In the period, there were 3.1 million older Americans. However, studies indicate that by 2030, there would be 35 million Americans. Therefore, providing geriatric care can no longer ben considered to be an afterthought since it serves a significant portion of the American population. Failure to plan for geriatric care means that the aging population would lack essential medical services, despite the fact that age increases the vulnerability to numerous diseases and conditions (Rosenblatt, 2017). Furthermore, they are more likely to experience complications, meaning that they need specialized care from physicians and other specialists.
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Since 35 percent of the region’s population is made up of women, preventive screening and other specialized services such as mammograms colonoscopies, and women visits. Therefore, the budget has to ensure that it provides for the required diagnostic facilities as well as the physicians who are qualified to provide primary care for geriatric patients.
Geriatric care is important for the following reasons. Firstly, people above 65 years have higher rates of inpatient stays when compare to other demographics. In addition, geriatrics have the higher per capita use of emergency services and 88 percent of the demographic are on prescription drugs. Geriatrics also face the possibility of having multiple chronic illnesses, meaning that they have to move from one institution to another when they cannot access the needed services and treatments. According to research, 20 percent of the geriatric population visited the emergency department in 2011. Furthermore, 40 percent of the elderly patients were admitted and a further 6 percent go to the ICU. The research also stated that 50 percent of the patients were prescribe new medication due to their condition. Visits to the ICU is not only physically taxing for the elderly patients but it is also mentally and psychologically exhausting. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the hospital caters for not only the physical needs of the patients, but also the psychological needs of the patients and their families.
Budget
As mentioned earlier, geriatric patients need specialized care. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that the budget allocates finances to provide both the resources and staff to cater for the needs of the target population. For instance, the budget will have to consider the needs of geriatric patients. This will require employing adequate numbers of physicians who are specialized in the care of older adults. In this context, the budget will be for a private medical practice that will specialize in the treatment of older patients. The budget will include the hiring of primary care physicians who will serve the target demography. The business will involve collaboration with insurance providers under the Medicare scheme. Therefore, there will be an agreement between the institution an HMO plans for reimbursement after care has been provided (Hurley & Bannick, 1993). The budgeting goals for the organization would be controlling the costs while increasing the number of geriatric members. This will mean that the operating cost is lower than the dollar reimbursement from insurance providers ( Medicare Risk Contract , 2019).
The objectives of the budget involve the following goals. Firstly, the budget will provide guidance for the institution for the direction which it should take. For example, the institution would look for higher reimbursements so that patients cannot stay too long in the hospital. Therefore, it would be prudent to ensure that experts are available for loner hours to so that all the patients can receive the best possible care. The budget has to include overtime for the professionals so that they can increase their working hours to serve better the clients. It is also important to ensure that the measure the performance of the staff to ensure that they meet the goals and expectations of the stakeholder. There will also be a bonus scheme for the employees to ensure that they are motivated enough to achieve the goals of the organizations. In addition the resources will be allocated to ensure that all the activities and the programs have adequate funding. The budget will also ensure that the employees have competitive pay so that the institution can recruit the best talent to serve the population. The financial information of the organization will be analyzed in quarterly to show that the bonuses will be dispensed to the staff on merit.
The budget will also include the provision of special services such as colonoscopy and mammograms. Without adequate resource for the right equipment, the geriatric patient in the region will fail to access the right services.
Based on the needs of the patients, the budget will also have to cater for a psychologist to help the elderly patients and their families to cope with the stresses of health problems and the anxieties faced during the period. Disease brings instability and uncertainty in families, especially in cases where the geriatric patient is the patriarch or matriarch
(Kelly-Barton, 2019). If the institution is not sensitive to the psychological and emotional stress experienced by patients. Then the health outcomes would be compromised in the long term.
The following allocations would be made for the hospital. The initial budget will be of $3 million. A total of $975,000 will be spent on salaries and bonuses for the experts required to run the institution. In addition, $1540,000 will be used to equip the hospital with mammogram and colonoscopy machines to cater for the needs of the female patients in preventative care. This is important considering that older patients face the possibility of developing multiple conditions which need to be discovered and treated early. The reminder of the budget will be used for operational costs to ensure that the institution is running smoothly in its day to day activities.
Budget Analysis
Budget one of the most important steps of setting up a successful geriatric care institution. If the resources are used adequately, then the target population would access the right care. In a population of 12,338, 17 percent of the population is made up of people over the age of 65. In addition, the media age in the region is 76 years. Furthermore, 35 percent of the demographic is comprised of women. Therefore, Pembroke Pines has to ensure that it adapts so that its healthcare sector can suit the needs of the growing geriatric population. Age and other factors mean that the demography needs specialized care. Therefore, the most crucial consideration in the budget is to ensure that there are enough resources to get the right experts to serve the population. This explain-s the fact as to why a significant portion of the budget would be used for the human resource. The allocation will cater for the physicians, nurses, mental health practitioners, social workers, pharmacists, dietician, lab technicians, and other experts. Since the healthcare needs of the demographic are complex and diverse, it is important to have experts from various fields to avoid patients moving from one institution to another in search of treatments and other specialized services (Rosenblatt, 2017). Since the hospital is mid seized, the ratio of the physicians to patients would be one to 20 patients. The budget allocation is sufficient to get the experts needed to serve 250 patients efficiently. The allocations would cater for the salaries, overtime, and bonuses required to keep the staff motivated, since they would be required to work for longer hours in order to serve the needs of the target population.
As mentioned earlier, 35 percent of the geriatric population in Pembroke Pines is made up of women. As they grow older, the need specialized services both to treat preexisting conditions and to prevent potential illness. In order for this to be possible, the institution has to have the right equipment to cater for the needs of the patients. The allocations will be used to purchase a mammograms machine. Since cancer is highly prevalent among the geriatric population, early diagnosis and treatment would play a significant role in keeping the geriatric population healthy. In addition, equipment to carry out colonoscopies would also be prioritized in the budget due to the healthcare needs of the patients. It is important for physicians to have the means of examining a patient’s internal; organs during the diagnosis process and to track the changes being experienced due to the patient’s conditions. Therefore, colonoscopy machines are crucial in the establishment of the geriatric clinic.
Apart from the mentioned equipment the hospital needs a wide array of equipment and furniture to accommodate patient. This is an expensive endeavor. Meaning that a majority of the budget will go towards equipping the hospital. A hospital without sufficient equipment will fail to run smoothly, even if it has the best human resource. Finally, the hospital will need support staff and other experts to facilitate the day to day running of the facility. In addition, the institution will have operating costs that need to be accounted for in the budget. Therefore, the remainder of the allocations would be used for operating costs.
Conclusion
In order for healthcare to be effective, the services provided need to be in line with the needs of the population. Since the American population is aging, the healthcare needs of the country have changed significantly, meaning that more emphasis should be placed in geriatric care. According to a study by the health policy institute, 20 percent of the American population would comprise of people over the age of 65 years. This demographic shift has policy and budgetary implications for both institutions and the government. In this context, the population in Pembroke Pines, Florida is no exception as the demographic trends indicate that the population is aging consistently. In a population of 12,338, 17 percent of the population is made up of people over the age of 65. In addition, the media age in the region is 76 years. Furthermore, 35 percent of the demographic is comprised of women, while the remaining 65 percent is made up of men. The following allocations would be made for the hospital. The initial budget will be of $3 million. A total of $975,000 will be spent on salaries and bonuses for the experts required to run the institution. In addition, $1540,000 will be used to equip the hospital with mammogram and colonoscopy machines to cater for the needs of the female patients in preventative care. This is important considering that older patients face the possibility of developing multiple conditions which need to be discovered and treated early. The reminder of the budget will be used for operational costs. Based on these statistics, planning and budgeting for geriatric care is of paramount importance for the residence of the Pembroke Pines, Florida.
References
American Fact Finder Community Facts . (2019, January 29). Retrieved from Census.Gov: https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=CF
Kelly-Barton, C. (2019, January 30). What is Geriatric Care? Retrieved from Senior Advisor: https://www.senioradvisor.com/blog/2016/07/what-is-geriatric-care/
Rosenblatt, B. (2017, February 7). Why Medicare Matters to All Americans . Retrieved from AARP: https://www.aarp.org/politics-society/advocacy/info-2017/why-medicare-matters-to-all-americans.html
Hurley, R. E., & Bannick, R. R. (1993, April ). Utilization Managers in Medicare Risk Contract HMOs: From Control to Collaboration . Retrieved from Science Direct: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0097599016306066
Kelly-Barton, C. (2019, January 30). What is Geriatric Care? Retrieved from Senior Advisor: https://www.senioradvisor.com/blog/2016/07/what-is-geriatric-care/
Medicare Risk Contract . (2019, February 17). Retrieved from PLEXIS Healthcare System: https://www.plexishealth.com/glossary/medicare-risk-contract/
Rosenblatt, B. (2017, February 7). Why Medicare Matters to All Americans . Retrieved from AARP: https://www.aarp.org/politics-society/advocacy/info-2017/why-medicare-matters-to-all-americans.html
Value Of Medicare Risk Contracts . (2019, February 17). Retrieved from Health Affairs: https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.1377/hlthaff.9.3.206
