Healthcare Quality Review

When it comes to developing and providing excellent treatment, healthcare practitioners confront a lot of different demands. The expectations for more responsibility, dwindling resources, and an aging population are among the most serious of the current challenges. Changes in the manner in which health care is given and paid are having an impact not just on patients, but also on the providers of that care. Providers are being compelled to develop new methods of doing business as a reaction to the obstacles that have been posed. As a result, it is very necessary for provider companies to have a thorough comprehension of the pressures they are subjected to as well as the possible solutions that are at their disposal.

A growing number of patients are holding healthcare professionals more accountable than ever before, which is one of the challenges they confront. It is possible for providers to be held responsible in a variety of different ways, such as by governmental authorities, third-party payers, or even by individual customers (Murden 786). The providers of healthcare are also being held responsible for the level of care they provide their patients. This has resulted in a greater level of scrutiny being placed on their procedures, and as a result, providers have been forced to embrace new methods of doing business in order to avoid being penalized financially. For instance, in order to conform to the criteria established by accrediting bodies, a great number of hospitals have launched programs aimed at enhancing the quality of patient care. Although these measures have contributed to an improvement in the quality of care that patients get, they have also contributed to an increase in the amount of pressure that is placed on clinicians. Not only are providers subject to more scrutiny, but they are also contending with dwindling resources. In recent years, there has been a general trend toward reductions in the amount of funds that the government provides for medical treatment. As a direct consequence of this, healthcare practitioners have been compelled to make difficult decisions about the distribution of their available resources. The providers have been able to partially offset these reductions by raising their costs, which is one of the ways they have done so. This has resulted in a rise in the rates that patients are required to pay, and it has also driven providers to diminish the quality of treatment that they provide as a result of the financial pressure they are under as a result of this.

Another strain that providers of healthcare are under is the need to increase their level of efficiency. This entails simplifying procedures and cutting down on the number of steps that are required to provide high-quality medical treatment. This goal may be accomplished in a variety of methods, including the use of technology and the establishment of defined procedures. When clinicians do this, they may reduce the amount of time needed to deliver treatment to patients while still providing the high-quality care that patients anticipate receiving. Having said that, this does not come without a price (Galanis 274). When these new approaches are implemented, service providers often find themselves in the position of having to give up long-standing customs that have been an integral part of their companies for many years. This may cause the personnel to experience a loss of identity as well as a diminished feeling of belonging as a result. Additionally, the new techniques often need for additional training than the previous ways, which might result in a scarcity of trained employees in the workforce. This presents a particularly difficult challenge in medical facilities, since the vast majority of employees are working in roles that call for a high degree of expertise. For instance, in order to replace shortages in jobs such as nursing and medical professionals, a number of hospitals have had to make financial investments in training programs. Because of this, there has been a scarcity of candidates for these roles, which has resulted in longer wait times for patients who need treatment. Another strain that providers of healthcare are under is the need that they become more efficient. As a result, they are embracing innovative practices such as the use of technology and the establishment of standardized procedures in order to cut down on the amount of time required to provide appropriate medical treatment.

Implementing strategies and methods to manage the increase of medical and pharmaceutical expenses and the implications they have on access to treatment and quality of care is the other strain that is placed on providers of healthcare services. This indicates that providers are searching for new methods to earn money and mitigate the consequences of these charges on their businesses (Owusu-Addo). To combat these expenses, providers are resorting to a number of different techniques, some of which include raising the prices of the services they provide, raising the rates that patients are required to pay, and lowering the quality of care that they deliver. Providers are also investigating novel ways to earn income, including the practice of charging patients for treatments rendered outside of the typical hospital or clinic environment. This is of utmost significance in hospitals since the vast majority of staff members work in roles that call for a high degree of expertise. As a result of this, several hospitals have been forced to make financial investments in training programs in order to replace vacant jobs in areas such as nursing and medical professionals.

In the 1960s and 1970s, researchers began to get a greater understanding of the impact that social factors have in health and well-being. This led to the beginning of the development of what is now known as the Social Determinants of Health, or SOH. The seminal study titled “The Determinants of Population Health,” which was published in 1978 by the World Health Organization, presented the argument for social determinants of health and stressed the role of social variables in determining health. Because of this study, funding for research into the effects of SOH on the quality of healthcare received was raised. In the last several years, there has been an increasing attention on social determinants of health and their influence on the quality of healthcare in the United States. As the demands on providers to improve patient safety and quality of care have grown, they have been the subject of heightened scrutiny. The increasing demands placed on healthcare resources as a result of growing SOH pressures have contributed to the overall rise in the cost of healthcare. Providers have devised a range of techniques in response to these demands, such as the implementation of accountable care organizations (ACOs). ACOs are a special kind of accountable care organization that work to include the assessment and improvement of the total quality of care provided by the organization into their daily operations. Although ACOs have some exciting potential for enhancing the quality of healthcare, there are also some problems that providers need to overcome. These issues include determining how to quantify the quality of SOH and how to motivate physicians to enhance SOH. As a result, it is essential for providers to have an understanding of the significance of SOH as well as the methods by which they may enhance the quality of healthcare they give.

Works Cited

Galanis, Giorgos, and Adam Hanieh. “Incorporating social determinants of health into modelling of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases: a baseline socio-economic compartmental model.” Social science & medicine 274 (2021): 113794.

Murden, F., et al. “The impact and effect of emotional resilience on performance: an overview for surgeons and other healthcare professionals.” British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery 56.9 (2018): 786-790.

Owusu-Addo, Ebenezer, Andre MN Renzaho, and Ben J. Smith. “Developing a middle-range theory to explain how cash transfers work to tackle the social determinants of health: A realist case study.” World Development 130 (2020): 104920.