The United States Healthcare System


Book Description

"This book aims to provide a broad understanding of the healthcare system of the United States, with attention to its origins, development, and future"--







The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century


Book Description

The anthrax incidents following the 9/11 terrorist attacks put the spotlight on the nation's public health agencies, placing it under an unprecedented scrutiny that added new dimensions to the complex issues considered in this report. The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century reaffirms the vision of Healthy People 2010, and outlines a systems approach to assuring the nation's health in practice, research, and policy. This approach focuses on joining the unique resources and perspectives of diverse sectors and entities and challenges these groups to work in a concerted, strategic way to promote and protect the public's health. Focusing on diverse partnerships as the framework for public health, the book discusses: The need for a shift from an individual to a population-based approach in practice, research, policy, and community engagement. The status of the governmental public health infrastructure and what needs to be improved, including its interface with the health care delivery system. The roles nongovernment actors, such as academia, business, local communities and the media can play in creating a healthy nation. Providing an accessible analysis, this book will be important to public health policy-makers and practitioners, business and community leaders, health advocates, educators and journalists.




Healthcare Disrupted


Book Description

“During a time of tremendous change and uncertainty, Healthcare Disrupted gives executives a framework and language to determine how they will evolve their products, services, and strategies to flourish in a increasingly value-based healthcare system. Using a powerful mix of real world examples and unanswered questions, Elton and O’Riordan lead you to see that ‘no action’ is not an option—and push you to answer the most important question: ‘What is your role in this digitally driven change and how can your firm can gain competitive advantage and lead?’”—David Epstein, Division Head, Novartis Pharmaceuticals “Healthcare Disrupted is an inspirational call-to-action for everyone associated with healthcare, especially the innovators who will develop the next generation of therapeutics, diagnostics, and devices.”—Bob Horvitz, Ph.D., David H. Koch Professor of Biology, MIT; Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine “In a time of dizzying change across all fronts: from biology, to delivery, to the use of big data, Health Disrupted captures the impact of these forces and thoughtfully develops new approaches to value creation in the healthcare industry. A must-read for those who strive to capitalize on change and reinvent the industry.”—Deborah Dunsire, M.D., president and CEO, FORUM Pharmaceuticals Healthcare at a Crossroad: Seismic Shifts, New Business Models for Success Healthcare Disrupted is an in-depth look at the disruptive forces driving change in the the healthcare industry and provides guide for defining new operating and business models in response to these profound changes. Based on original research conducted by Accenture and years of experience working with the most successful companies in the industry, healthcare experts Jeff Elton and Anne O’Riordan provide an informed, insightful view of the state of the industry, what's to come, and new emerging business models for life sciences companies play a different role from the past in to driving superior outcomes for patients and playing a bigger role in creating greater value for healthcare overall. Their book explains how critical global healthcare trends are challenging legacy strategies and business models, and examines why historical leaders in the industy must evolve, to stay relevant and compete with new entrants. Healthcare Disrupted captures this pivotal point in time to give executives and senior managers across pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, medical device, medical diagnostics, digital technology, and health services companies an opportunity to step back and consider the changing landscape. This book gives companies options for how to adapt and stay relevant and outlines four new business models that can drive sustainable growth and performance. It demonstrates how real-world data (from Electronic Medical Records, health wearables, Internet of Things, digital media, social media, and other sources) is combining with scalable technologies and advanced analytics to fundamentally change how and where healthcare is delivered, bridging to the health of populations, and broadening the resposibility for both. It reveals how this shift in healthcare delivery will significantly improve patient outcomes and the value health systems realize.




Health Professions Education


Book Description

The Institute of Medicine study Crossing the Quality Chasm (2001) recommended that an interdisciplinary summit be held to further reform of health professions education in order to enhance quality and patient safety. Health Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality is the follow up to that summit, held in June 2002, where 150 participants across disciplines and occupations developed ideas about how to integrate a core set of competencies into health professions education. These core competencies include patient-centered care, interdisciplinary teams, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and informatics. This book recommends a mix of approaches to health education improvement, including those related to oversight processes, the training environment, research, public reporting, and leadership. Educators, administrators, and health professionals can use this book to help achieve an approach to education that better prepares clinicians to meet both the needs of patients and the requirements of a changing health care system.




Cognitive and Perceptual Rehabilitation


Book Description

Reflecting current practice with a renewed focus on function-based assessments and evidence-based interventions, Cognitive and Perceptual Rehabilitation: Optimizing Function includes all of the tools you need to make a positive impact on your patients’ lives. This clinical resource summarizes, highlights, and constructively critiques the state of cognitive and perceptual rehabilitation. This text helps you enhance your patients’ quality of life by promoting improved performance of necessary and meaningful activities, and decreasing participation restrictions. Evidence-based intervention tables focus on improving daily function through proven methods. Summary tables highlight each assessment’s clinical utility and pyschometric properties to provide you with the tools you need to choose the best assessment for each patient. An entire chapter on Application of Concepts features five case studies, each discussing background data and medical record review, evaluation findings, assessments, long-term goals, short-term goals, and interventions/functional activities to help you apply the theories and principles from the book to real-world situations. Handy learning aids including Key Terms, Learning Objectives, and Review Questions help you remember important information.




Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care


Book Description

Drawing on the work of the Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine, the 2007 IOM Annual Meeting assessed some of the rapidly occurring changes in health care related to new diagnostic and treatment tools, emerging genetic insights, the developments in information technology, and healthcare costs, and discussed the need for a stronger focus on evidence to ensure that the promise of scientific discovery and technological innovation is efficiently captured to provide the right care for the right patient at the right time. As new discoveries continue to expand the universe of medical interventions, treatments, and methods of care, the need for a more systematic approach to evidence development and application becomes increasingly critical. Without better information about the effectiveness of different treatment options, the resulting uncertainty can lead to the delivery of services that may be unnecessary, unproven, or even harmful. Improving the evidence-base for medicine holds great potential to increase the quality and efficiency of medical care. The Annual Meeting, held on October 8, 2007, brought together many of the nation's leading authorities on various aspects of the issues - both challenges and opportunities - to present their perspectives and engage in discussion with the IOM membership.




The Future of Nursing


Book Description

The Future of Nursing explores how nurses' roles, responsibilities, and education should change significantly to meet the increased demand for care that will be created by health care reform and to advance improvements in America's increasingly complex health system. At more than 3 million in number, nurses make up the single largest segment of the health care work force. They also spend the greatest amount of time in delivering patient care as a profession. Nurses therefore have valuable insights and unique abilities to contribute as partners with other health care professionals in improving the quality and safety of care as envisioned in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) enacted this year. Nurses should be fully engaged with other health professionals and assume leadership roles in redesigning care in the United States. To ensure its members are well-prepared, the profession should institute residency training for nurses, increase the percentage of nurses who attain a bachelor's degree to 80 percent by 2020, and double the number who pursue doctorates. Furthermore, regulatory and institutional obstacles-including limits on nurses' scope of practice-should be removed so that the health system can reap the full benefit of nurses' training, skills, and knowledge in patient care. In this book, the Institute of Medicine makes recommendations for an action-oriented blueprint for the future of nursing.




Retooling for an Aging America


Book Description

As the first of the nation's 78 million baby boomers begin reaching age 65 in 2011, they will face a health care workforce that is too small and woefully unprepared to meet their specific health needs. Retooling for an Aging America calls for bold initiatives starting immediately to train all health care providers in the basics of geriatric care and to prepare family members and other informal caregivers, who currently receive little or no training in how to tend to their aging loved ones. The book also recommends that Medicare, Medicaid, and other health plans pay higher rates to boost recruitment and retention of geriatric specialists and care aides. Educators and health professional groups can use Retooling for an Aging America to institute or increase formal education and training in geriatrics. Consumer groups can use the book to advocate for improving the care for older adults. Health care professional and occupational groups can use it to improve the quality of health care jobs.




The Future of the Nursing Workforce in the United States


Book Description

The Future of the Nursing Workforce in the United States: Data, Trends and Implications provides a timely, comprehensive, and integrated body of data supported by rich discussion of the forces shaping the nursing workforce in the US. Using plain, jargon free language, the book identifies and describes the key changes in the current nursing workforce and provide insights about what is likely to develop in the future. The Future of the Nursing Workforce offers an in-depth discussion of specific policy options to help employers, educators, and policymakers design and implement actions aimed at strengthening the current and future RN workforce. The only book of its kind, this renowned author team presents extensive data, exhibits and tables on the nurse labor market, how the composition of the workforce is evolving, changes occurring in the work environment where nurses practice their profession, and on the publics opinion of the nursing profession.