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2. HCA 305 Week 1 DQ 1 Cost, Quality, and Access HCA 305 Week 1 DQ 2 Stakeholders HCA 305 Week 2 DQ 1 Hospital System Quality Improvement HCA 305 Week 2 DQ 2 Choosing a Health Care Provider HCA 305 Week 2 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 HCA 305 Week 3 DQ 1 Diversity in the Health Care Workforce HCA 305 Week 3 DQ 2 Supply and Demand of Health Care Professional HCA 305 Week 4 DQ 1 Health Care Systems Around the World HCA 305 Week 4 DQ 2 Medicare Debate HCA 305 Week 5 DQ 1 Health and Medical Technologies HCA 305 Week 5 DQ 2 The Future of the U.S. Health Care System HCA 305 Week 5 Final Paper Cost, Quality, and Access. Sultz and Young (2011) note that there is currently a strong movement within the U.S. health care system to address “the seemingly unresolvable need to correct problems of access and cost without compromising the quality of care” (pg. 1). After viewing the required video Reinventing Healthcare-A Fred Friendly Seminar, discuss how one of the cases presented during the seminar is an example of the tension between cost, access, and quality. Highlight what you consider to be the biggest problem inherent in the system. HCA 305 Entire Course HCA 305 Week 1 DQ 1 Cost, Quality, and Access Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL

3. Stakeholders. Sultz and Young (2011) describe the various stakeholders in the U.S. health care system. Choose one of these stakeholders and describe their role, concerns, interests, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of their influence in the system. In what ways has this group contributed to rendering the current health care system as too complex and unmanageable? Discuss what you think this group could do to improve the current health care system. Hospital System Quality Improvement. Imagine that you have recently been appointed as the head of a large hospital system. You’ve been hired into this role by the Board of Trustees for your vast knowledge on how to improve the quality of services. Over the last few years, the hospital system has had a number of issues arise related to the quality of care it provides, including numerous medical malpractice cases, low patient satisfaction ratings, and a warning from the national organization that accredits the hospital, to improve the quality or risk losing its accreditation. Based on this week’s reading: What are some of the issues that you would want to explore to help improve the quality? What information/data would you ask for to help analyze the problem? What are some of the areas that you would want to focus on to help improve the quality of the hospital? Suggest at least one solution to improving poor quality of care in a hospital system. HCA 305 Week 1 DQ 2 Stakeholders HCA 305 Week 2 DQ 1 Hospital System Quality Improvement Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL

4. Choosing a Health Care Provider. Numerous resources now exist that allow individuals to make an informed choice of who will provide their medical care. Unfortunately, the average health care consumer is unaware of where to find information about hospitals, medical providers, and insurance coverage. Imagine that you are assisting someone in your community (a real or fictitious person of your choice) in finding a medical provider. In your post, provide a brief description of this person and address the following questions: What factors would you need to keep in mind while conducting this search? How would you evaluate who the best medical provider for this person is? Consider the type of care necessary, cost, the level and type of insurance coverage available, and any other related issues. What would make someone a good or bad medical provider for this person? Review this week’s reading “Your Guide to Choosing Quality Health Care,” for ideas. Based on this information, conduct a search for medical providers in your area. What did your search reveal? The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. With the passing of the P.P.A.C.A., the government has taken a step towards reshaping the health care system. For this assignment, you will use the library to research some of the key characteristics of the act and take a position on what you think some of the biggest pros and cons of the act are. You should review some of the major historical developments that resulted in the passage of the law, and explain the major influences that shaped its creation. In addition, you will need to find a popular lay media report (like a website or newspaper/magazine article) that supports your position. Compare and contrast the information reported in the article with other official information available from academic research and/or governmental sources. Finally, you should analyze how the law will affect the U.S. health care system in terms of cost, quality, access, and the provision of services. You must use the library to conduct the research necessary to complete this assignment. Prior to beginning this assignment, you are strongly encouraged to complete the Research Tutorial, specifically units 2-3 and 5-8, which is available through the University Library. In a three to four page double-spaced paper (excluding title and reference page), respond to the following questions: 1. Purpose of the law: What is the purpose of the P.P.A.C.A.? HCA 305 Week 2 DQ 2 Choosing a Health Care Provider HCA 305 Week 2 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL

5. Diversity in the Health Care Workforce. Review the “Executive Summary” article. The report provides six sets of recommendations for increasing the number of under-represented minorities working in the health care field. Choose one of the recommendations that you believe could have the biggest impact if implemented. In your own words, provide a brief description of the recommendation, including the rationale for it. Explain why you believe this recommendation is important. Then, conduct a search to identify an example of how this recommendation has been implemented. Provide a description of the example, including an overview of any research that has been done to show its effectiveness. Discuss the effect of the implementation of this recommendation. Supply and Demand of Health Care Professionals. Mounting research suggests that the demand for health care professionals is growing while supply is starting to decrease. However, the rates of supply and demand vary greatly depending on region of the country. Based on the reading for the week and your independent research: What is the state of the supply and demand for health care professionals in your area? HCA 305 Week 3 DQ 1 Diversity in the Health Care Workforce HCA 305 Week 3 DQ 2 Supply and Demand of Health Care Professional Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL

6. Health Care Systems around the World. Health care systems around the world provide different levels and types of care, and are paid for in dramatically different ways. Choose a country other than the U.S. and research its health care system. Compare and contrast the U.S. system to the one you chose, and provide an overview of the health care system and how it is paid for. Make sure your post addresses the following: How do the people in the country access health care? How do the citizens of the country pay for the health care? What is the quality of the health care they receive? Describe some of the pros and cons of the system. Provide at least two examples of how this country’s system compares to the health care system in the United States. Use at least two academic or government resources other than your textbook as references. Medicare Debate. The Medicare system is currently undergoing a dramatic shift, as the number of people participating is increasing, which in turn has enormous consequences for how it is funded. Some argue that Medicare spending is out of control and will result in a collapse of the system if nothing changes, while others claim the system is doing well and is meeting the needs of the millions of Americans who have no other health care. For this discussion, you will participate in a debate with your classmates about Medicare. Students whose last names start with the letters A-M will be on the “Maintain Medicare As-Is” side. Students whose last names start with N-Z will be on the “Reform Medicare” side. HCA 305 Week 4 DQ 1 Health Care Systems Around the World HCA 305 Week 4 DQ 2 Medicare Debate Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL

7. Health and Medical Technologies. Health and medical technologies available to both health care providers and administrators continue to advance rapidly. Choose a recent medical technology and provide a description of it. Discuss some of the pros and cons of this technology and assess how it drives consumer demand, health system changes, and health care delivery. Consider how this technology could be used in your current or future career. The Future of the Health Care System. We have spent the last five weeks reviewing the major developments in the evolution of health care delivery in the United States and analyzing the system in terms of cost, quality, access, and the provision of services. Address the following in your post: What do you consider to be the most important factor in fixing the numerous issues inherent in the U.S. health care system? What role would selected major stakeholders play in its implementation? What types of research studies could be conducted that would support your stance? How might the proposed emphasis on preventative health care affect the cost of health care in the future? What impact would a focus on preventative health care have on your chosen factor? HCA 305 Week 5 DQ 1 Health and Medical Technologies HCA 305 Week 5 DQ 2 The Future of the U.S. Health Care System Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL

8. Focus of the Final Paper The U.S. health care system has numerous known issues that affect the overall quality, access, and cost of services available. For your Final Paper, you will create an eight- to ten-page proposal (excluding the title and reference pages) on your solution to one of these issues. In the proposal, you will describe the nature of the issue, trace the history of its development, describe what has and has not been done to address it thus far, provide a set of recommendations on what should be done to address it in the future, and discuss how major stakeholders should be involved to make your proposed changes. HCA 305 Week 5 Final Paper Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL

9. For more course tutorials visit www.hca305cart.com Hca 305 cart COURSE TUTORIAL