The health care system of Norway is committed to providing health care services for all citizens regardless of income and to the principle of equal access to services. Accordingly, the health status of Norwegians is one of the best in the world, ranking much higher than that of the United States.
The health care system in Norway is organized in three levels: local, regional, and national. The local level is represented by 434 municipalities; each municipality is responsible for providing all the services under primary health care to their population. The regional level has the responsibility for specialist health care and is represented by five regions. The national level is responsible for health care overall and is managed by the Ministry of Health and Care Services. (1)
Primary care is mainly publicly provided and has as its’ general aim the improvement of the general health of the population and the treatment of health problems that do not require hospitalization. Each of the 434 municipalities decide individually how to best serve their particular population and are responsible for the provision and funding of primary health care. Areas that are included in primary health care are promotion of health and prevention of illness, general medical treatment, and nursing care. At this level general practitioners provide basic health care and act as gatekeepers for any specialty service. Every Norwegian is given the right to choose one practitioner as their primary care provider. After choosing, they are required to seek care from this provider only; however, they have the right to change practitioners twice a year. Another right includes the freedom to seek a second opinion from another general practitione...
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The Bitter Pill by Brill Steven addresses the problem attached to medical bills in small towns across the country. Brill feels that American health care is eating away our economy and our treasure and discusses the costs associated with the provision of health care services in the U.S. The article explores the medical world through the medical experience encountered by a 50-year-old Scott S. and his wife Rebecca S. from the surrounding suburb near Dallas Texas. How is it possible that a laboratory work for a breathing problem cost $132,303?
On a global scale, the United States is a relatively wealthy country of advanced industrialization. Unfortunately, the healthcare system is among the costliest, spending close to 18% of gross domestic product (GDP) towards funding healthcare (2011). No universal healthcare coverage is currently available. United States healthcare is currently funded through private, federal, state, and local sources. Coverage is provided privately and through the government and military. Nearly 85% of the U.S. population is covered to some extent, leaving a population of close to 48 million without any type of health insurance. Cost is the primary reason for lack of insurance and individuals foregoing medical care and use of prescription medications.
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Despite the established health care facilities in the United States, most citizens do not have access to proper medical care. We must appreciate from the very onset that a healthy and strong nation must have a proper health care system. Such a health system should be available and affordable to all. The cost of health services is high. In fact, the ...
National health systems are assessed by the extent to which expenditure and actions in public health and medical care contributes to the crucial social goals of improving health, increasing access to quality healthcare, reducing health disparities, protecting citizens from penury due to medical e...
The United States health care system is one of the most expensive systems in the world yet it is known as being unorganized and chaotic in comparison to other countries (Barton, 2010). This factor is attributed to numerous characteristics that define what the U.S. system is comprised of. Two of the major indications are imperfect market conditions and the demand for new technology (Barton, 2010). The health care system has been described as a free market in
Niles, N. J. (2011). Basics of the U.S. health care system. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.
...e crucial change needed in health services delivery, with the aim of transforming the current deteriorated system into a true “health care” system. (ANA, 2010)
Primary health care is the essential step to the Canadian health system. It is often associated with other specialized health care sectors, and community services. Many patients visit various services under primary health care such as family doctors' offices, mental health facilities, nurse practitioners' offices; they make phone calls to health information lines, for example, Tele-health; and receive suggestions from physicians and pharmacists (First Ministers; meeting on healthcare, n.d.). This service can prevent patients from visiting the emergency department, when all that is required is some guidance and advice. Having primary care services can reduce the consumption of acute beds, where only seriously ill patients can use the acute beds when it is available. Primary care not only deals with sickness care, but it helps patients receive preventable measures; it promotes healthy choices (Primary health care, n.d.). The focus on appropriate health care services, when and where they are needed, enhanced the ability of individuals to access primary care in various settings: at home, in a hospital or any number of family health care venues, such as Family Health Teams (FHTs), Community Health Centres (CHCs), or Nurse Practitioner- led clinics. This paper will look at the litigious heated argument in the Romanow Report concerning primary care. It will begin with a discussion of the outcome of the Accord on Health Care Renewal (2003) and The First Ministers' Meeting on the Future of Health in Canada (2004), both referring to primary care, which will then be followed with an assessment and analysis of the different ways in which the accords have been addressed in support of primary care. Followed by a discussion about the changes on ...
Bergström, K1., Söderfeldt, B., Berthelsen, H., Hjalmers, K., & Ordell, S. (2010). Overall job satisfaction among dentists in Sweden and Denmark: A comparative study, measuring positive aspects of work. 2010 Nov;68(6):344-53. doi: 10.3109/00016357.2010.514719.
Rising medical costs are a worldwide problem, but nowhere are they higher than in the U.S. Although Americans with good health insurance coverage may get the best medical treatment in the world, the health of the average American, as measured by life expectancy and infant mortality, is below the average of other major industrial countries. Inefficiency, fraud and the expense of malpractice suits are often blamed for high U.S. costs, but the major reason is overinvestment in technology and personnel.
Everyone country has success or strengths within its health care system. These strengths have helped revolutionize the country’s health care system into what it is today.
- Organisation and Management of Health Care, April 2002, Version 2.0 , Main Contributor: Katie Enock, Public Health Specialist, Harrow Primary Care Trust www.healthknowledge.org.uk
The cost of US health care has been steadily increasing for many years causing many Americans to face difficult choices between health care and other priorities in their lives. Health economists are bringing to light the tradeoffs which must be considered in every healthcare decision (Getzen, 2013, p. 427). Therefore, efforts must be made to incite change which constrains the cost of health care without creating adverse health consequences. As the medical field becomes more business oriented, there will be more of a shift in focus toward the costs and benefits, which will make medicine more like the rest of the economy (Getzen, 2013, p. 439).