NURS-FPX 6008 Assessment 1: Identifying a Local Health Care Economic Issue Essay

NURS-FPX 6008 Assessment 1: Identifying a Local Health Care Economic Issue Essay

NURS-FPX 6008 Assessment 1: Identifying a Local Health Care Economic Issue Essay

 Health economics entails how care recipients pay for care services, how the payment is processed, and how healthcare systems can be restructured and improved (Teisberg et al., 2020). Healthcare economics is a vital aspect of the healthcare system since it defines how healthcare service recipients’ and healthcare stakeholders’ economic behavior impacts healthcare services’ cost and quality. There are different healthcare economic issues affecting health populations and communities. These issues impact the population or community’s accessibility to health and health outcomes. Therefore, it is essential to identify the healthcare economic issues facing an institution or healthcare organization and thus strategize on addressing them to improve care and health outcomes. This essay presents a healthcare economic issue selected from a specific population, the reason for selecting the issue, the Impact of the healthcare economic issue on my Work, colleagues, the organization, and the community, and the gap contributing to the need to address the economic issue.

Healthcare Economic Issue and Its Impact on the Population

Health insurance among minority health populations is the selected healthcare economic issue. Different health insurance plans are available for the general population to enable them to cater to healthcare expenses. However, not all people have health insurance coverage. The main reason for not having the covers is due to the high rates of insurance premiums. According to Glied et al. (2020), despite policies such as the Affordable Care Act that provide financial security to citizens as they use the healthcare system, most citizens still lack health insurance coverage, especially minority populations. Additionally, most of the minority populations are from low-resource settings and, therefore, cannot afford health insurance coverage.

Lack of insurance among minority populations considerably impacts the health of these populations in a number of ways. First and foremost, high healthcare costs make minority populations shy away from seeking healthcare services despite the high need. People will fail to seek healthcare services if they are unable to cater to the expenses. Failure to seek healthcare services may lead to poor health outcomes, especially for patients with chronic illnesses that require regular hospital visits, such as diabetes and cancer. In addition, these diseases are most prevalent among minority populations such as African Americans, thus negatively affecting the population members’ quality of life and health outcomes.

Secondly, the lack of health insurance prevents minority populations from getting expensive but necessary health services. More so, they may have insurance that does not cater to all essential healthcare services, thus negatively impacting their health outcomes. For instance, healthcare services such as mental illness therapies are relatively expensive but necessary. Therefore, the members of minority health populations may not access these services even though they need them.

The Rationale for the Selected Healthcare Economic Issue

The primary reason for selecting healthcare insurance as the local healthcare economic issue is that I have experienced it first-hand. I have lived among African Americans, one of the minority health populations, and I have seen the struggles they go through when getting essential health services out of pocket, especially for those without insurance coverage. As mentioned earlier, despite the availability of affordable public health insurance coverages such as Medicaid and Medicare, African Americans find it hard to afford the premiums due to their low resource settings and economic backgrounds. Additionally, public health concerns such as diabetes and cancer are most prevalent in these populations. The personal values that guided the selection of the healthcare economic issue include fairness and justice. I believe providing healthcare services to minority populations is a matter of ensuring health equity. Therefore, the health care economic issue of healthcare insurance should be addressed.

Impact of the Health Insurance Issue on my Work, community, and Colleagues

Lack of health insurance affects the quality of care for patients across different health populations. Research shows that healthcare institutions struggle to balance providing good quality healthcare services when the patients cannot pay (Blumenthal et al., 2020). For instance, in the Covid-19 era, we found it hard to provide the necessary health services, which needed a lot of expenses to patients without medical coverage. It also felt like an ethical issue since, as care providers, we are supposed to prioritize patient well-being over the monetary value of the services. However, providing good quality healthcare required money, which was a significant issue for my colleagues and me.

The community is also affected by health insurance since the incidence and prevalence of health conditions continue to increase due to the inaccessibility of health care services such as screenings and follow-ups. The gap contributing to the need to address the healthcare economic issue is addressing the healthcare services accessibility gap. In addition, the fact that minority populations have more health needs makes it essential to address the issue of health insurance. 

Conclusion

The cost of healthcare continues to increase. Additionally, the quality of healthcare services highly depends on the cost/ funding, which comes from the patient’s healthcare expenses. The high cost of healthcare impacts the accessibility of healthcare services, especially for minority populations who do not have health insurance. Lack of health insurance is a major healthcare economic issue that should be addressed to enhance health equity and justice.   

References

Blumenthal, D., Fowler, E. J., Abrams, M., & Collins, S. R. (2020). Covid-19—implications for the health care system. New England Journal of Medicine, 383(15), 1483–1488. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmsb2021088

Glied, S. A., Collins, S. R., & Lin, S. (2020). Did The ACA Lower Americans’ Financial Barriers To Health Care? Health Affairs (Project Hope), 39(3), 379–386. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2019.01448

Teisberg, E., Wallace, S., & O’Hara, S. (2020). Defining and Implementing Value-Based Health Care: A Strategic Framework. Academic medicine: Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, 95(5), 682–685. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000003122

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Assessment 1 Instructions: Identifying a Local Health Care Economic Issue

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Write a brief 2-3 page report about a health care economic issue that you have identified. Address the reasons why you selected the issue you did; identify how this issue impacts the work of you, your colleagues, and your organization; and describe the gap that you see contributing to this issue.
Introduction
Note: Each assessment in this course builds upon the work you have completed in previous assessments. Therefore, you must complete the assessments in the order in which they are presented.
Health care economics has the potential to affect each of us either personally or professionally. This impact can be viewed from a health economics point-of-view (where we discuss the value of health care and its efficiency), or it can examine how health care is financed (focus on how health care is funded). Health economics and health care funding have the potential to influence health care outcomes in a variety of ways. As you move through this course, you will work toward developing a potential solution for a health care issue within your current or desired health care system. The goal of this assessment is to identify an economic health care issue that you will address throughout the course.
Context and Background
Health care economics has the potential to affect each of us either personally or professionally. This impact can be viewed from a health economics point-of-view (where we discuss the value of health care and its efficiency) or it can examine how health care is financed (focus on how health care is funded). Health economics and health care funding have the potential to influence health care outcomes in a variety of ways. The bulleted list below outlines topics and health care issues that many institutions encounter. Organizations often have to implement strategies or initiatives to resolve or improve these issues and create positive patient and institution outcomes.
Examples of health care economic issues:
• The influence of health care economics on community health—for example, social determinants of health (such as access to care and health care finance).
• Supply and demand: How do we in the health care environment exist when there are more needs from communities and patients than we have the resources to supply? An example of this would be a high number of patients and low resource levels such as staff, supplies, and equipment.
• The public’s attitude toward health, disease, and the health care system—for example, how money is distributed has the potential to impact the health care outcomes of certain populations. An example of this would be the lack of access and funding for underserved and rural communities.
• Other issues might include access to care, social determinants of health, senior health, food insecurity or food desserts, inadequate staffing, homelessness, rehospitalization environmental issues leading to chronic disease, et cetera.
As you move through this course, you will work toward developing a potential solution for a health care issue within your current or desired health care system. The goal of this assessment is to identify an economic health care issue that you will address throughout the course.
Later in the course, you will (a) conduct a needs analysis to justify your focus on this topic area using the literature of the field, (b) present an argument for change in your organization bolstered by a cost-benefit analysis, and (c) advocate for this change at the state level. Keep these future assessments in mind as you select your topic.
Instructions
For this assessment, you will write a brief 2–3 page report about the health care economic issue that you have identified. In addition, you will also be asked to:
• Address the reasons you selected the issue.
• Identify how the issue impacts the work of you, your colleagues, and your organization.
• Describe the gap that you see contributing to this issue.
Be sure to address each main point. Review the assessment instructions and scoring guide, including performance-level descriptions for each criterion, to ensure you understand the work you will be asked to complete and how it will be assessed. In addition, note the requirements for document format and length and for supporting evidence.
Overall, you will be assessed on the following criteria:
• Describe a health care economic issue and how it impacts a specific community or population.
o Note the data, information, or observations used to support your description.
• Explain the rationale for choosing your health care economic issue.
• Explain how the health care economic issue has affected your work, your organization, your colleagues, and your community.
• Identify the gap that is contributing to the need to address the economic issue.
o Cite at least one piece of evidence to support your identification of the gap. This could be public health data, a peer-reviewed journal article, or another scholarly source.
• Convey purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards.
Additional Requirements
• Length of Submission: 2–3 double-spaced pages.
• Number of References: Cite at least one piece of evidence to support your identification of the gap. This could be public health data, a peer-reviewed journal article, or another scholarly source.
• APA formatting: Titles, headings, resources, and citations are formatted according to the APA style.
Note: As you revise your writing, check out the resources listed on the Writing Center’s Writing Support page.
Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and scoring guide criteria:
• Competency 1: Analyze the effects of financial and economic factors (such as cost-benefit, supply and demand, return on investment, and risks) in a health care system on patient care, services offered, and organizational structures and operation.
o Explain the rationale for choosing the health care economic issue.
• Competency 2: Develop ethical and culturally equitable solutions to economic problems within a health care organization in an effort to improve the quality of care and services offered.
o Describe a health care economic issue and how it impacts a specific community or population.
• Competency 3: Justify the qualitative and quantitative information used to guide economic decision making to stakeholders and colleagues.
o Identify the gap that is contributing to the need to address the economic issue.
• Competency 4: Develop ethical and culturally equitable economic strategies to address dynamic environmental forces and ensure the future security of an organization’s resources and its ability to provide quality care.
o Explain how the health care economic issue has affected your work, your organization, colleagues, and community.
• Competency 5: Produce clear, coherent, and professional written work, in accordance with Capella writing standards.
o Convey purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards.

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Identifying a Local Health Care Economic Issue Scoring Guide

CRITERIA	NON-PERFORMANCE	BASIC	PROFICIENT	DISTINGUISHED
Describe a health care economic issue and how it impacts a specific community or population.	Does not describe a health care economic issue.	Describes a health care economic issue. However, does not address, or it is unclear, how it impacts a specific community or population.	Describes a health care economic issue and how it impacts a specific community or population.	Describes a health care economic issue and how it impacts a specific community or population. Notes the data, information, or observations used to support the description.
Explain the rationale for choosing the health care economic issue.	Does not list reasons for choosing the health care economic issue.	Lists reasons for choosing the health care economic issue, but does not provide a full explanation.	Explains the rationale for choosing the health care economic issue.	Explains the rationale for choosing the health care economic issue. Reflects on how personal experiences and values informed the choice of issue.
Explain how the health care economic issue has affected your work, your organization, colleagues, and community.	Does not explain how the health care economic issue has affected any of your work, your organization, colleagues, and community.	Explains how the health care economic issue has affected some but not all of your work, your organization, colleagues, and community.	Explains how the health care economic issue has affected your work, your organization, colleagues, and community.	Explains how the health care economic issue has affected your work, your organization, colleagues, and community. Specifically notes ways in which the issue may be having greater impacts on diverse or lower socio-economic groups.
Identify the gap that is contributing to the need to address the economic issue.	Does not identify a gap.	Identifies a gap, but it is unclear if the gap is contributing to the need to address the economic issue.	Identifies the gap that is contributing to the need to address the economic issue.	Identifies the gap that is contributing to the need to address the economic issue. Cites at least one piece of evidence to support the identification of the gap. This could be public health data, a peer-reviewed journal article, or another scholarly source.
Convey purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards.	Does not convey purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and writing scholarly standards.	Conveys purpose, in an appropriate tone or style. Clear, effective communication is inhibited by insufficient supporting evidence or minimal adherence to applicable writing standards.	Conveys purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards. Attempts to use APA style and formatting.	Conveys clear purpose, in a tone and style well-suited to the intended audience. Supports assertions, arguments, and conclusions with relevant, credible, and convincing evidence. Exhibits strict and nearly flawless adherence to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards, including APA style and formatting.