Patient Access to Quality Health Care

Patient Access to Quality Health Care

The healthcare industry is an essential part of society and is fundamental in supporting people’s health and wellness. It does not, however, come without difficulties, one of which is the problem of access to high-quality medical care (Bor et al., 2021). This paper aims to solve the problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare, identify the resources required, as well as the important players and the part they play in the strategy. We will also discuss the qualities of a strong healthcare leader and their function in the plan, external or internal regulations that must be taken into account to ensure adherence to governmental, institutional, or agency policies, organizational and strategic development structures and procedures that address the issue, and tactics for disseminating the suggested plan. Do you need urgent assignment help ? Get in touch with us at eminencepapers.com. We endeavor to provide you with excellent service.

Health Care Administration Issue

This paper addresses the problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare as it relates to healthcare management. Access to healthcare has been cited as a major problem in the US, particularly in underprivileged areas. Because so many individuals lack access to high-quality medical treatment, morbidity and death rates have gone up (Nass et al., 2019). Poverty, a lack of health insurance, one’s location, and one’s language are all obstacles to obtaining health treatment. These obstacles have made it difficult for people to get high-quality medical treatment, which has led to a decline in the population’s general health and welfare.

Resources Needed

It will be crucial to determine the resources required to put an effective strategy into action if we are to solve the problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare. The strategy will heavily include important stakeholders, including patient advocates, government agencies, and healthcare groups and providers. The main caregivers will be health care professionals who are in charge of giving patients medical treatment and making sure they get high-quality care. They will get training to provide treatment that is respectful of patients’ cultural ideas and values while also taking into consideration their particular needs.

The infrastructure required to assist healthcare professionals will be provided by healthcare organizations. They will provide the facilities and medical supplies required so that healthcare professionals may deliver high-quality treatment. Programs addressing the socioeconomic determinants of health, such as poverty, a lack of health insurance, and language hurdles that impede patients from obtaining adequate healthcare, will be developed by healthcare organizations. They will also provide resources to remove these obstacles, allowing patients to get the treatment they need.

The strategy will be heavily dependent on government organizations for financing and regulatory control. In addition to providing cash to promote the delivery of high-quality healthcare, they will make sure that organizations and providers of healthcare abide by legal standards like HIPAA (Shepperd et al., 2019). They will be creating laws that promote health equality and deal with socioeconomic determinants of health. The proposal will heavily rely on patient advocates to fight for patients’ rights. They will see to it that patients are respected and treated with decency and that their rights are upheld. They will be crucial in enabling individuals to understand their rights in terms of health care and make choices about their own treatment.

Characteristics of an Effective Health Care Leader

In order to solve the problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare, a strong healthcare leader is essential. The leader will be essential in creating and carrying out a strategy to increase patient access to high-quality medical care. Being visionary is the first quality of a successful health care leader (Watson, 2018). They must be able to successfully convey their goals to others and have a clear picture of what they want to accomplish. They may then encourage and inspire others to work to realize the goal by doing this. Being a strategic thinker is the second quality of a successful health care leader. The leader must possess the capacity for critical thought and plan development to realize their objective. This strategy should involve figuring out how to get the resources required and formulating a plan to do so. The leader must also be able to foresee possible problems and devise solutions for them.

Being collaborative is the third quality of a successful health care leader. To accomplish their objectives, the leader must be able to establish rapport and collaborate well with other stakeholders. In order to establish and carry out a strategy to increase patient access to high-quality healthcare, collaboration among healthcare providers, governmental organizations, patient advocates, and other stakeholders is crucial. The leader should have the capacity to hear others’ needs, recognize shared objectives, and work together to realize them. A successful health care leader should also be open and honest about their choices and actions. They should be responsible for their activities and have excellent stakeholder communication. Transparency fosters trust and aids in the understanding of the strategy and its possible results by stakeholders. The plan’s progress should be communicated to stakeholders, and the leader should be able to defend their choices.

Regulations to Consider

Various external or internal requirements must be taken into consideration in order to assure compliance with legislative, institutional, or agency norms. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is among the most important rules to take into account. Health insurance providers are required by federal law to provide some basic medical services. Preventive care, emergency services, and mental health treatments are among these advantages. Additionally, the ACA forbids insurance providers from turning away customers because of pre-existing diseases. To provide patients with high-quality treatment, healthcare companies must abide by the ACA’s regulations.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) should also be taken into account. Federal legislation known as HIPAA safeguards the security and privacy of patient health information. HIPAA’s requirements for the use and disclosure of protected health information must be followed by covered organizations, such as healthcare providers and health insurance firms (Watson, 2018). Patient consent, data security, and breach notification are all governed by HIPAA rules. In order to safeguard patient privacy and avoid data breaches, healthcare executives must make sure that their firms adhere to HIPAA standards.

The Joint Commission is a free-standing, nonprofit organization that certifies and accredits healthcare programs and organizations in the US. Organizations must adhere to the Joint Commission’s guidelines in order to keep their accreditation. The Joint Commission sets standards for quality and safety in healthcare. The Joint Commission has established standards in a variety of fields, including as leadership, drug management, infection control, and patient care. To offer patients with high-quality healthcare and keep their organizations accredited, healthcare executives must make sure that their companies adhere to The Joint Commission’s requirements.

Organizational and Strategic Development Structures/Processes

There will be a variety of organizational and strategic development structures/processes implemented to solve the problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare. One of them is the need for healthcare professionals to get training to provide patients with care that is culturally appropriate. This entails being aware of the particular requirements of their patients and offering treatment that respects their cultural beliefs and values. Language barriers shouldn’t impede patients from receiving high-quality medical treatment. Thus, medical professionals should be educated in efficient communication with patients who speak various languages.

The establishment of programs by health care institutions that address the socioeconomic determinants of health is another significant structure or process that will be implemented. With the help of these initiatives, patients will be able to overcome the obstacles that keep them from receiving high-quality medical care—poverty, a lack of health insurance, and language challenges (Bor et al., 2021). To create and administer these initiatives, healthcare institutions should work in conjunction with community-based organizations, patient advocacy groups, and other stakeholders. Health care organizations may contribute to the reduction of health inequities and the enhancement of patient outcomes by addressing the socioeconomic determinants of health.

The problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare will be addressed in large part by government organizations. In addition to developing policies that address the socioeconomic determinants of health and advance health equality, they will give money to assist the delivery of high-quality healthcare. Collaboration between federal, state, and local government agencies as well as alliances with healthcare organizations, providers, and patient advocacy groups, will be necessary to achieve this. These parties may create a thorough strategy to solve the problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare by cooperating.

Strategies for Communicating the Proposed Plan

Several strategies will be used to successfully explain the proposed plan. First, stakeholders will be informed of the strategy using clear and succinct language. There will be no use of technical language that could be confusing to non-healthcare professionals. To ensure that stakeholders can comprehend the strategy and its objectives, uncomplicated language will be utilized instead. The stakeholders and their responsibilities in the strategy will be identified in a communication plan that will be created later. The strategy will include the communication channels that will be utilized to reach out to each stakeholder, including email, newsletters, and social media. The communication strategy will also include the frequency of communications as well as the details of each communication’s content. We can make sure that each stakeholder is involved and aware of the strategy by defining the stakeholders and their responsibilities in it (Bor et al., 2021). Third, to show the plan and its effects, visual aids like charts and graphs will be employed. This will make it easier for stakeholders to comprehend the strategy and its possible results. Stakeholders will find it simpler to explain the strategy to others, such as their coworkers or patients, if there are visual aids available. We can make sure that stakeholders fully get the strategy and can successfully explain it to others by utilizing visual aids.

In conclusion, access to high-quality healthcare for patients is a major problem, particularly in impoverished areas. Health care practitioners, health care organizations, government agencies, and patient advocates are among the resources needed to solve this problem. A strategy to solve the problem must be developed and put into action by a capable health care leader. To guarantee adherence to statutory, institutional, or agency rules, both internal and external requirements must be taken into account. To solve the problem of patient access to high-quality healthcare, organizational and strategic development structures/processes should be put in place. To explain the suggested strategy to stakeholders, efficient communication tactics should be used. We can raise people’s access to high-quality medical treatment and thus raise their level of health and well-being.

References

Bor, D. S., Sharpe, R. E., Bode, E. K., Hunt, K., & Gozansky, W. S. (2021). Increasing patient access to MRI examinations in an integrated multispecialty Practice. RadioGraphics, 41(1), E1-E8.

Nass, S. J., Cohen, M. B., Nayar, R., Zutter, M. M., Balogh, E. P., Schilsky, R. L., … & Elenitoba‐Johnson, K. S. (2019). Improving Cancer Diagnosis and Care: Patient Access to High‐Quality Oncologic Pathology. The Oncologist, 24(10), 1287-1290.

Shepperd, S., Charnock, D., & Gann, B. (2019). Helping patients access high-quality health information. Bmj, 319(7212), 764-766.

Watson, N. F. (2018). Expanding patient access to quality sleep health care through telemedicine. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 12(2), 155-156.

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Description: When a patient has health insurance, depending on which premium, they are made to use providers or hospitals that are “in-network” to avoid higher costs of services. This can often be an issue for patients because some providers are not in the network with their health insurance, specifically Medicare recipients. The Patient Access to Higher Quality Health Care Act would “repeal changes made by health care reform laws to the Medicare exception to the prohibition on certain physician referrals for hospitals” (Congress.gov, 2023).

Background: According to the American Hospital Association, “For decades, the Ethics in Patient Referrals Act (“Stark Law”) has protected the Medicare program from the inherent conflict of interest created when physicians self-refer their patients to facilities and services in which they have a financial stake” (AHA, n.d.). At one point, physicians were allowed to make referrals to hospitals with ownership within the entire facility; this gap was closed in 2010 when the Affordable Care Act was passed.

Social Determinant: One social determinant is access to health care and quality care. Patients, regardless of their socioeconomic status, should receive high-quality care. The American Hospital Association states, “The Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and MedPAC all found that physician-owned hospitals’ patients tend to be healthier than patients with the same diagnoses at general hospitals” (AHA, n.d.). This would lead those with serious illnesses to rely on general hospitals for healthcare services.

Evidence: The growth of Physician-owned hospitals was prohibited in 2010 after the passing of the Affordable Care Act. According to Ehrenfeld, “a systematic review of 30 years of research demonstrating that physician-owned specialty hospitals or so-called “focused factories” offer higher-quality care at comparable or lower cost, while physician-owned community hospitals are no worse than their counterparts” (Ehrenfeld, 2023). If H.R. 977 is passed into law, it would allow physicians of physician-owned hospitals to extend their services to the community by opening new hospitals that would provide high-quality, efficient care and be affordable to patients. This would place competition against general hospitals at risk of losing market share, leading them to reform their services to stay in competition. This would benefit patients in being able to seek assistance in a variety of hospital or hospital-owned facilities.