Healthcare

Health Care Issues in the United States Health Services Organization- HSA 500 March 16, 2011 Health Care Issues in the United States 1. Explain how health is affected by behaviors, economics, and social structure. Health is the general condition of a person in all aspects. It is also a level of functional and/ or metabolic efficiency of an organism, often implicitly human. Health can be affected by behaviors, economics, and social structure. Behavior such as stress, worry, and fatigue affects a person health. It is the self-destructive behavior that will affect a person health. For example, indulging in food and sweets, or being an alcoholic, using drugs, etc. all affects our health in different ways. Tobacco use, unbalanced nutrition (too many calories and/or to much of one food group and not enough of the others) and a lack of physical activity are some other factors that play a major role in how health is affected by behavior. 2. Describe the three stages of medical technology development. According to (Williams & Torrens, 2010) there are three stages in the development of medical technologies: (1) Scientific background and development of the idea for a product; (2) Product development, and approval, and distribution, and (3) Diffusion, adoption, and utilization of the product. In the first stage, a significant amount of individual basic science research is carried out that eventually comes together in the development of an idea for treatment, a drug, a medical device, or piece of medical equipment (2010). This stage of development also raised three policy- related questions. The first question was in relation to the length of time. If the basic science research establishment is so dependent on public support, it might seem possible that a governmentally determined set of priorities could take precedence over a broader set of mandates determined by the scientific community (2010). The second question was in regards to public funding for basic science research centers on how best to evaluate the returns from this huge investment on a cost-benefit or cost-effectiveness basis (2010). The third question dealt with the industrial and commercial benefit from the significant public investment in basic science in this country (2010). Product development and distribution is the second stage to medical technology development. This stage is pretty self-explanatory. It deals with the process of moving from basic research to implementation. There are three basic questions being answered in this stage. Is there a need for the product' Since the development and launch of a particular technology or pharmaceutical is an extremely expensive venture, private companies must spend considerable time verifying that there is a real need for the product in terms of a viable market, simply to confirm that a reasonable economic return can be generated (2010). Can an appropriate product be developed that accomplishes what the basic science suggests' Simply involves clarifying and refining the original scientific idea, determining its safety and effectiveness, and developing the best design and package for the final product (2010). Can necessary tests and clinical trials be carried out that will win the important regulatory approvals required for public sale and use is the third question in regards to product development and distribution (2010). The Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) usually approve all drugs and pharmaceuticals as well as all medical devices and some medical equipment (2010). Diffusion, adoption, and utilization of new products and technology is the third and final stage of medical technology development. This stage focus on the emphasis on taking the drug, device, or technology and making it generally accepted, available, and used by patients and clinicians(2010). In a nutshell, this stage involves convincing the appropriate hospitals and medical organizations to make it available and convincing individual clinician of effectiveness of the drug, product, or device (2010). 3. Describe the major trends in population demographics over the past 80 years. Fertility is one of the key trends in population demographics over the past 80 years. Williams & Torrens states in Introduction to Health Services that, fertility is a measure of reproduction. Age- specific fertility rates are the primary indicator utilized in measuring population (2010). Birth rates are computed as the total number of births to population (2010). The total fertility rate is the sum of all of the age-specific rates (2010). Abortion is another major trend in population demographics. The United States experiences perhaps one million abortions annually at the current time, and an unknown number of conceptions results in spontaneous abortions (2010). Another important current trend is the aging of the population (2010). This trend is the result of increased longevity and relatively lower fertility than was experienced earlier in the last century (2010). 4. Describe the most important trends in morality over the past century. According to Williams & Torrens (2010), indicators of mortality are often used to measure a society’s health status. Life expectancy is computed from mortality data and reflects a cohort effect for estimated years of life remaining (2010). At any age life expectancy can be computed, but it’s typically done between birth and the age of 65 (2010). Mortality and life expectancy data are typically presented on a sex-specific basis due to the consistent and substantial differences in mortality experienced comparing females and males (2010). Infant and maternal mortality is another important trend discussed in Introduction to Health Services. Infant mortality is measured as the number of infants who die in the first year of life per thousand live births (2010). Cancer mortality and Human Immunodeficiency Virus mortality are two more important trends over the past 80 years. Other factors that have set important trends in mortality are vehicular related accidents, firearms, violence, and suicide. References Williams, Stephen J., & Torrens, Paul R., (2010 Custom Edition) Introduction to Health Services.