Overview of Health Care System F Importance of health care F Defining health care services F Health care/medical care as a system F Shift in health care paradigm

Importance of Health Care in the US F Over $1 trillion in expenditures and approximately 15% of GNP in the US.

What is Health? F World Health Organization (WHO) definition F Interrelationship among the physical, mental, and social dimensions. F Spiritual dimension? Greater attention is being given to the role of faith in health.

What Impacts Health? F Blum’s model of health –Genetic factors. –Behavior and life-style factors –Environmental factors –Medical care system F Most diseases are multifactorial in etiology (cause) and result from the interaction of multiple genetic, behavior and environmental factors. Can be considered risk factors.

What Is Health Care? F Long’s (1996) definition

Model of the Health Care System F Health Care > Health Status –Medical care –Education –Housing –Diet –Environmental monitoring and cleanup F Medical care is only one of the components of the health care system.

Network of Health Care/Medical Care Organizations –Financing organizations –Suppliers –Providers u Preventative care u Primary care u Secondary care u Tertiary care u Restorative care u Continuing care

Health Care Organizations as Social Systems F HCOs viewed as systems formed by subsystems: people, management subsystems, tasks/technology, structure. F HCOs in turn are subsystems of the larger environment. F Closed system F Open system F Organizational subsystems in an open system

Major Forces Affecting Health Care Delivery F Financing: shift to risk-based contracts F Changes in technology emphasizing outpatient and home treatment. F Growth of information technology F Aging of the population and chronic diseases F Increasing population diversity

Shift in the Health Care Paradigm F Moving away from the episodic treatment of acute illness events to the provision of a coordinated continuum of care that will enhance the health status of a defined population.

The New Paradigm and HCOs Strategies F Integrated delivery systems or vertically integrated systems

Management challenges