one: Some refer to the health care system as the “sick care system” because we have been more focused on treating people that are already sick. Instead of doing preventative treatments, we wait until the person does not have another option. A good example would be the obesity problem that we see every day. Obesity can cause many other health problems, such as diabetes. Our society does little to prevent and turn back the effects from obesity and many will not seek medical attention or alter their lifestyle.

“Prevention is the most effective, common-sense way to improve health and reduce health care costs in the United States, but there’s never been a strong national interest in prevention” (Auerbach 2013). If we focused on prevention, the nation could possibly decrease the amount that we are spending on health care. Much of the care that is received is more specialized and frequent after someone becomes sick rather than trying to keep them healthy in the first place. I agree that our country can be deemed as the “sickness care system” because it is extremely hard to see a doctor and have them take you seriously if they do not physically see that you are sick. In my experience, they wait until you exhibit signs and symptoms, then they treat you. Unfortunately, this system caused me to have life long health problems that might have been severely diminished if health care would have just taken me seriously. The life long treatment is definitely more expensive than keeping people healthy in the first place.

References

Auerbach, J. (2013). Sickcare. Huffpost.com. Retrieved 21 May 2020, from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/health-care_b_2427433.

Knickman, J., & Elbel, B. (Eds.). (2019). Jonas & Kovner’s Health Care Delivery in the United States (12th ed.).

two: The healthcare industry and related government policies have experienced criticism in abundance over the past several years. Commonly, the health care system has been deemed “the sickness care system” because of this criticsm. I do agree that this term is not far from the truth of today’s health care system. More often than not, today’s health care system is primarily based on the treatment of chronic disease rather than focused towards prevention methods. This is due to health care traditionally “placing less value on and providing less reimbursement for efforts to promote health or to prevent illness and injury” and delivering more in an acute setting (Jonas, Knickman, & Elbel, 2019). This mindset will not change overnight and has the probability to last many more years. With many individuals living longers due to health innovations and different lifestyles, the healthcare industry will experience an influx of chronic conditions (Fani Marvasti & Stafford, 2012). These chronic conditions and diseases, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancers, account for up to 75% of healthcare facility visits (Fani Marvasti, et al., 2012).

To combat being deemed as the “sickness care system,” health care systems need to start their transition of focus towards more prevention efforts rather than relying soley on treatment. By shifting their mindset, the health care industry can help address other underlying issues such as high health care costs, increasing readmission rates, and lack of health care access. It is truly unfortunate that the health care system is looked down upon, especially in a leading world country. With the collaborative efforts of health care industry leaders and the community, there can be a time when the health care system is referred to in a more positive manner.

References:

Jonas, S., Knickman, J., & Elbel, B. (2019). Jonas & Kovners Health Care Delivery in the United States. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company, LLC.

Fani Marvasti, F., & Stafford, R. S. (2012). From “Sick Care” to Health Care – Reengineering Prevention into the U.S. System. The New England Journal of Medicine, 367(10), 889–891.https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp1206230

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