Care outside the Hospital Setting

Care outside the Hospital Setting

For a long time, many hospital procedures such as surgery and diagnosis required patients to plan for an inpatient stay at the hospital. However, in recent times, there have been many changes in the health sector that allow people to get medical attention without having to stay at the hospital. These are known as outpatient services. Most hospitals are investing more in these services. Consequently, the revenue obtained from these services is gradually rising.

Contributing factors

Increased population

Several factors have contributed to positive population growth. Thus, the number of people requiring medical attention increased significantly (Girard, 2013). Consequently, this led to overcrowding in many hospitals. Many outpatient clinics were opened in different parts of the country to relieve some of the pressure on hospital staff. This move reduced congestion in hospitals as people would get access to healthcare in different places.

Consumerism

Many outpatient centres are opened based on consumer need. Research is conducted to establish the health needs of people in a given area, and outpatient centres are provided to meet their needs. For example, a setting may be put in place to provide immunization services to those living nearby.

Affordability

Outpatient services have proven to be more affordable since the focus is on specific procedures. In contrast, visiting a hospital would require one to undergo several procedures which they have to pay for. Some of these procedures are unnecessary and can be avoided by visiting an outpatient centre. With this in mind, many hospitals opt to open outpatient centres to increase their consumers, hence boosting their revenue.

Advantages

Cheaper

Outpatient treatment costs less than inpatient treatment. Outpatients are not admitted to the hospital. Therefore, they do not have to pay for services such as accommodation and food.

Patients get more one-on-one time with counsellors

Outpatient groups are not as large as inpatient groups. Therefore, counsellors can give enough attention to each patient. The talks are not rushed, allowing the patients to express themselves fully. Also, the patients are more likely to open up to them because the group involved is smaller. In cases of rehabilitation from addiction, this openness helps to speed up the recovery process (“Inpatient vs Outpatient Rehab: The Pros and Cons”, 2020).

Patients’ lives do not come to a standstill

Outpatient care allows people to work within their schedule and make time to visit the hospital when convenient for them. Moreover, they can return to their families after each visit, allowing them to take care of their children as required.

Disadvantages

Dependent on the patient

Outpatient care is highly reliant on the patient’s cooperation. If the patient does not attend honour meetings as required, the treatment will be ineffective.

Patients still deal with everyday challenges

Patients return to their homes after each visit, thereby having to handle the stress brought about by managing children and jobs. This may interfere with the recovery process, and in some cases, worsen the situation at hand.

From this information, it is arguable that consumers benefit more than organizations. Organizations have to invest money to put up new buildings and infrastructure to handle the people’s needs. Consumers, on the other hand, get to save a lot of money that would have been spent on transport to the main facility and paying for accommodation within the hospital.

Affordable Care Act

One of the main features of this act is access to health care through expanded coverage (Kantarjian, 2016). Therefore, it can be argued that it promotes the existence of more alternative settings in a hospital setting. It is known that outpatient services are more affordable compared to inpatient services, another major feature of the Affordable Care Act.

References

Girard, K. (2013). Health care delivery systems and occupations. Retrieved from

Inpatient vs Outpatient Rehab: The Pros and Cons. (2020). Retrieved 16 February 2020, from https://www.midwestrecoverycenters.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-inpatient-vs-outpatient-treatment/

Kantarjian, H. (2016). The Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, three years later: A reality check. Cancer, 123(1), 25-28. doi: 10.1002/cncr.30384

Shi, L. & Singh, D. A. (2017). Chapter 7: Outpatient services and primary care. Essentials of the U.S. health care system (4th ed., pp. 167-176). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC. Available in the Online Library.