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Healthcare delivery system of the United States
Health care system in the USA
Critiques of our healthcare system
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In the United States, we are fortune to have access to an excellent healthcare system. We are able to receive medical attention, testing, and medications when we need it. Other countries are not as fortunate to receive the same type of medical delivery system as we do in the United States. One of those countries is Ghana. Ghana is a country in Africa that has been plagued with hardship in their medical system. One of the diseases that has affected Ghana, and all of Africa, is HIV/AIDS. Ghana has many organizations that help with the fight against HIV/AIDS and aide in financial resources for the country. Ghana as a nation has recently enacted a healthcare system whose goal is to provide universal coverage to the Citizens.
Human immune
According to the article, “Financing Public Healthcare Institutions in Ghana”, written by Akosua and Aseweh (2009), in the 1880’s Ghana was on a fee-for-service basis. According to Akosua and Aseweh (2009), “There were only a few Ghanaian elite and colonial government administrators who enjoyed the formal healthcare services provided in hospitals and the colonial government” (p. 130). After Ghana’s civil war ended and freedom was obtained, Ghana’s government began providing free healthcare for all of its citizens, completely funding the services with tax revenues (Akosua & Aseweh, 2009). Unfortunately, This was not economically sustainable for the Ghana government. To ad to this problem, the oil crisis in the 1970’s and 1980’s, which came from a sudden hike in oil prices, had a severe effect on the country. After the oil crisis, the heavy debt burden and economic disequilibrium resulted in financial declines in the health budget and educational sector (Akosua & Aseweh ,2009). According to Akosua and Asewheh,
According to the study, “Estimating the Cost of Healthcare Delivery in Three Hospitals in Southern Ghana”, written by Anthony Q.Q.Aboagye, A.N.K. Degboe and A.A.D. Obuobi (2010), the study was conducted to collect information on how much it cost to run three hospitals in Ghana. Three hospitals were chosen for the study: mission, referral, and direct hospital (Aboagye A et al. 2010). According to the study, the cost to operate breaks down as follows: The missionary hospital cost US $758,647, the district hospital cost US $487,537, and the referral hospital cost US $1,394,321 (Aboagye A. et al.
Compounding these exceptionally troubling numbers is a significant population with human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS). Again estimates vary, but the United Nations projects the national prevalence rate to be 4.5 percent of the population. Other estimates place the rate as high as 12 percent in the urban population and 5 percent in rural regions. As a small “win”, the infection rate for HIV/AIDS has recently shifted downward due to significant UNAIDS/WHO efforts (Haiti – Health).
Health care in Brazil became a major issue between the years 1985-1988 (Nascimento, 2013). The citizens took notice that a large gap between health care services provided to the wealthy and services provided to the rest of the population existed. Health care in Brazil became a right to all citizens in 1988 and the Sistema Unico de Saude- SUS (Unified Health Care System) was established (Nascimento, 2013). Citizens are able to purchase private insurance provided that they can afford it. The Brazilian health care system is funded by the government through social security, taxes, and those employed by the government. This system was instituted during a time in the nation’s history that was politically and economically unstable. The Family health Program was established in 1994 (Nascimento, 2013). Preventative care is this primary focus of this program. The government sets up community health centers that are financed through the government. Nurses, primary care physicians, and medical assistants. The program is commended for being efficient. The program solves 85% of health related problems (Nascimento, 2013). Cost, quality, and access to care still remain a challenge to the Brazilian health care system. Although improvements have been made, impacts on women and maternal child health, the elderly, and increasing cases of many non-communicable diseases create many disparities.
Although the sub-Saharan region accounts for just 10% of the world’s population, 67% (22.5 million) of the 33.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS in 1998 were residents of one of the 34 countries of sub-Saharan Africa, and of all AIDS deaths since the epidemic started, 83% have occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (Gilks, 1999, p. 180). Among children under age 15 living with HIV/AIDS, 90% live in sub-Saharan Africa as do 95% of all AIDS orphans. In several of the 34 sub-Saharan nations, 1 out of every 4 adults is HIV-positive (UNAIDS, 1998, p. 1). Taxing low-income countries with health care systems inadequate to handle the burden of non-AIDS related illnesses, AIDS has devastated many of the sub-Saharan African economies. The impact of AIDS on the region is such that it is now affecting demographics - changing mortality and fertility rates, reducing lifespan, and ultimately affecting population growth.
Access to health does not only relate to how available the services are but also how they are delivered at the point of care. People should have access to equity healthcare which means the provision of fair goods and services and opportunities needed for the physical, psychological and spiritual health (McGibbon, Etowa & McPherson, 2008). These health services can be made available through the creation of more public clinics and hospitals. Several studies done in developing countries indicates that introducing medical user fees leads to reducing utilization which tends to affect the poor (CSDH, 2008).
"Ghana." Economy: Population, GDP, Inflation, Business, Trade, FDI, Corruption. Index of Economic Freedom, n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2014. .
Ideally, each health center in a district level should have a physician, a dentist, nurses, midwives, and a pharmacist assistant to deliver comprehensive and integrative primary health care including the outreach activities. However, the health center performance is relatively low because most of the local governments have little experience in providing health facilities equipped with trained health personnel. Some health centers in remote area, especially in Eastern Indonesia, have no general practitioners, nurses or midwives. A report showed that 31% out of 1165 health centers were located in remote area, about half of 31% health centers were reported having no GPs, 18% were without nurses, and 12% had no midwives, compared to the urban areas in which only 5% health centers were without physicians (Ferry Efendi et al., 2012). Most of the health staffs are reluctant to work in the remote areas and tend to work in the cities based on economic reasons. In addition, living in the remote areas with limited access of transportation and electricity is quite difficult for most of the health workers. Therefore, such conditions could
Ghana’s government was a monarchy government with local kings that paid thanks to the Ghana’s king. Moreover, Ghana had a king to rule/control them and they were thanked from local kings. 300 CE. was the beginning of Ghana, this was also when they gained the control of salt and gold! Later on, in 300 CE, they made the discovery of iron. In 610 CE. the Muslims took over Ancient Ghana. Not long after, in 800 CE. Ghana was officially founded, but many stories/documentations say it was founded in 300 CE. Around 200 years later Ghana captured Aoudaghost and was the height of the Ghanaian
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, commonly known as HIV/AIDS is a disease, with which the human immune system, unlike in other disease, cannot cope. AIDS, which is caused by the HIV virus, causes severe disorder of the immune system and slowly progresses through stages which disable the body’s capability to protect and instead makes it vulnerable for other infections. The first blood sample to contain HIV was drawn in 1959 in Zaire, Africa while molecular genetics have suggested that the epidemic first began in the 1930s (Smallman & Brown, 2011). Currently, according to the Joint UN Program on HIV/AIDS, 35.3 million people worldwide are living with HIV. In 2012, an estimated 2.3 million people became newly infected with the virus and 1.6 million people lost their lives to AIDS (Fact Sheet, UNAIDS). It is due to the globalized international society that a disease which existed in one part of the world has managed to infect so many around the world. Globalization is narrowly defined by Joseph Stiglitz as "the removal of barriers to free trade and the closer integration of national economies" (Stiglitz, 2003). Globalization has its effects in different aspects such as economy, politics, culture, across different parts of the world. Like other aspects, globalization affects the health sector as well. In a society, one finds different things that connect us globally. As Barnett and Whiteside point out (2000), “health and wellbeing are international concerns and global goods, and inherent in the epidemic are lessons to be learned regarding collective responsibility for universal human health” (Barnett & Whiteside, 2000). Therefore, through all these global connections in the international society, t...
According to the World Bank, the budget for 2014 universal health care system of Indonesia was at 4.86 billion dollars to care for 240 million people (N. Mboi 2015). And about 80000 villages. The healthcare system is a universal health care system that 's run by the government of Indonesia called, Jaminan Kesehatan Nasional (JKN). The health care system is seeing overseen by the Minister of Health. It 's interesting to note that just as Britain the wealthy do not utilize this health care system and in the fact that of 1800 hospitals 650 of them are private those private hospitals do you not meet the accreditation of the Ministry of Health but that doesn 't stop the wealthy from continuing to go to these facilities. Girl according to the World Health Organization Indonesia ranks 92nd out of 190 countries in the same rating system it 's worth noting that Britain ranks 18th. Now let 's look at the dominant characteristics of
Kenya is a developing country in East Africa region with a total land area of 582,646 km2. It gained independence in 1963 from British colonial rule. It is neighbor to Somalia and Sudan which have experienced political instability marred with civil strife but the country has remained relatively stable despite the effects of such on socio-economic status of the country. According to Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (2010), Kenya has 38.6 million people with a growth rate of 2.8% annually with a majority population living in rural areas (World Bank, 2010). Under its current constitution (promulgated in 2010), Kenya is headed by a president with a devolved county government system comprising of 47 counties. Its last concluded general elections in 2013 were peaceful compared to the conflicted 2007 that sparked violence in the country.
Accra, the capital of the beautiful and welcoming nation Ghana, is located in West Africa, West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea. It is known for its wildlife, beauteous attractions, and richness in gold and secluded beaches. Ghana also known as the “Gold Coast,” gained their independence on March 6th 1957 from the British. The nation was led to independence by the first president Kwame Nkrumah, who altered the country to a republic. Ghana continues to grow each day as a nation, Though Ghana is growing each day they face many economic and social problems, such as poverty, health issues, education, corruption, and economic challenges.
According to a survey conducted by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) (2014) on the poverty profile in Ghana between the years 2005 and 2013 the Ghana Living Standard Survey reveals, that one-third of the population of Ghana are poor and one-tenth are extremely poor. To assess this fact, GSS used conditions such as
Today, 108 years later, much has changed within the health care arena. Presently, there is an increase in the number of persons resorting to the public hospitals and public clinics for medical attention. For those that are in good financial standing they make use of private hospitals or/and other private medical facilities. While some people may use the public medical facilities by choice, there are others whom, because of their income or lack of income, have no other alternative but to fall at the hands of the public services. Too, for many years the Bahamas has had the problem of immigrants from Haiti crossing the Bahamian borders illegally and this therefore results in an increase in the funds allocated for the health care industry.
The emergence of HIV/AIDS is viewed globally as one of the most serious health and developmental challenges our society faces today. Being a lentivirus, HIV slowly replicates over time, attacking and wearing down the human immune system subsequently leading to AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) at which point the affected individual is exposed to life threatening illnesses and eventual death. Despite the fact that a few instances of this disease have been accounted for in all parts of the world, a high rate of the aforementioned living with HIV are situated in either low or medium wage procuring nations. The Sub-Saharan region Africa is recognized as the geographic region most afflicted by the pandemic. In previous years, people living with HIV or at risk of getting infected did not have enough access to prevention, care and treatment neither were they properly sensitized about the disease. These days, awareness and accessibility to all the mentioned (preventive methods, care etc.) has risen dramatically due to several global responses to the epidemic. An estimated half of newly infected people are among those under age 25(The Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic). It hits hard as it has no visible symptoms and can go a long time without being diagnosed until one is tested or before it is too late to manage.
Ghana is a country located on the west coast of Africa; Africa is a resource rich continent that supplies much of the world with diamonds, oils, petroleum and more through trade. The country of Ghana has undergone revision in their labor forces in the past twenty years, Ghana has moved more from the traditional labor sector like agriculture to more modern sectors. One of the more modern sectors of Ghana today is the industrial sector which is relatively small and is mainly operated by the Ghanaian government. The industrial sector was expanded by the government and president to employ the unemployed and promote investment in the private sector. After the 1990’s Ghana has seen consistent economic growth but their economic growth from the last eight years has increased tremendously. In the most recent of years ( after 2004) the growth rate of Ghana started to accelerate and it increased to over six percent between a five year span from 2005-2010, with the average being above seven percent in 2000 and 2009. The increase in sectors has taken Ghana from a poverty rate of more than half 51.7% to 28.5% by the year 2005. Before Ghana’s independence on March 6, 1957 most of the country’s gdp was contributed to agriculture and the industry sector was less of a contributor. Recently, between the years of 2001-2010 the roles of whom or what contributes to the gdp has switched. Most of the contribution to the gdp is that of the service sector. Even though, the service sector has risen to the top of the economy, agriculture is slowly but surely is rising back to the top of Ghana’s highest gdp contributor by the way of nontraditional exports like automobiles and cocoa. The service sector of Ghana provides many residents w...