Equitable Medical Care to Native Groups: Healthcare Clinic Plan Essay

Community Needs

Native American communities are an important segment of the US population that continue to die of numerous illnesses compared to the other American groups. Many people in this clique suffer from diseases like diabetes mellitus, chronic liver disease, lower respiratory disease, injuries, and psychological illnesses (Smith, 2017). Despite the drive by the US government to offer equitable medical care to native groups like the American Indians and Alaska Natives, these communities face more significant discrepancies and inequality in healthcare access and health status compared to other US populations.

Financial Population

The Native American communities primarily use Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) due to the associated benefits. Medicaid and CHIP insurance programs protect the Native American communities by allowing them to access medical services that a local Indian health clinic might not offer. However, a significant number of the American Native communities do not have a reliable insurance cover due to the misconception that the Indian Health Services covers all the medical care requirements (Hoag et al., 2018). Other obstacles include a lack of trust in the government programs and poor hospital staffing.

Community Medical Resources

The growing number of American Native communities in the health profession in the US is an essential medical resource that the clinic can take advantage of to offer healthcare services. In the case of the persistent healthcare needs of this group in the US, hospitals should have an adequate supply of Alaska Native or American Indian doctors. The Native American communities have conquered all barriers to account for 0.4% of the physician workforce as of 2018 (Robeznieks, 2019). The increasing number of medical professionals is a significant resource that the clinic can use to enhance health promotion, prevention of diseases, and access to healthcare services for these communities.

Location of the Clinic

The developers will construct the healthcare clinic in Alaska, home to various indigenous communities. The build-up space of this clinic should promote staff efficiency by reducing the travel distance between the frequently used spaces and creating an effective logistics system for fool supplies. Based on the desirable build-up space, the clinic will rest in a 30,000 sqft build-up area to adhere to the local policies and laws. The space will allow many hospital beds and other care rooms while promoting compliance and expandability.

Medical Providers

Nursing Staff Mix

The healthcare clinic will comprise nursing assistants, registered nurses, and licensed vocational nurses. The goal of this healthcare clinic is to meet the healthcare prerequisites of the American Indians and the Alaska Natives. By mixing the services of the registered nurses, nursing assistants, and licensed vocational nurses, the clinic will lower the infection rates, mortality rates, and pressure sores within this native community. For the healthcare clinic to improve the healthcare outcomes, the hiring committee will only recruit personnel with high education levels and more experience. This skill mix will enhance the healthcare outcomes of the Native American Communities.

Medical Documentation

With the recent technological advancement, the healthcare clinic will use electronic medical records (EMR) to keep the patient’s health records. Kaneko et al. (2018) define EMR as an enabling technology that allows healthcare practitioners to offer quality programs. Using this technology, the hospital will document clinical data, computerize provider-order entry, and enhance access to tests, imaging results, and billing. Besides improving care, EMR will help the healthcare clinic enhance patient services and increase the safety of medical treatment. Besides, the clinic’s productivity will increase due to data availability. Thus, the clinic will use EMR to store the patient’s data.

Billing Job Description

This healthcare clinic is looking to fill the role of billing. Thank you for reviewing the desired qualifications and applying for the vacancy. Your level of experience can as well compensate for your qualifications.

Responsibilities for billing

1. Offer financial advisory services to hospital management
2. Accurately perform quantitative business calculations
3. Meet the patient service goals
4. Reconciling hospital cash received from all sources and preparing it for posting and deposit
5. Applying all hospital payments to the A/R system
6. Reviewing, correcting, and approving electronic payment transactions for final posting
7. Generating transactions to bill second level payers or patients for balances

Qualifications for billing

1. Proficiency in MS Excel spreadsheets
2. An IT graduate with 3 to 5 years of relevant experience
3. Familiarity with insurance firms, billing software, and assortment procedures
4. Working knowledge of Billing software, such as Sandata, Prohealth
5. Bachelor’s Degree or Licenciatura in Accounting or Finance required

Long- and Short-Term Budget

References

Hoag, S., Schottenfeld, L., Sager, N., & Foster, L. (2018). Coverage For American Indian and Alaska Native Children April 2019.

Kaneko, K., Onozuka, D., Shibuta, H., & Hagihara, A. (2018). Impact of electronic medical records (EMRs) on hospital productivity in Japan. International journal of medical informatics, 118, 36-43. Web.

Robeznieks, A. (2019). Native Americans work to grow their own physician workforce. American Medical Association

Smith, M. (2017). Native Americans: A Crisis in Health Equity. Hum. Rts., 43, 68.