This essay will focus on hospitals in USA. More specifically, the study will seek to answer some questions about hospitals in the United States of America.
The essay will analyze the history of the hospitals and how they were structured 50 years ago. The essay will also discuss newer types of hospital structures today, different types of hospitals, and why Senator Chuck set up a lot of hospitals. In addition, the study will also look into the main concerns of the American hospitals as listed on the American hospital association website. Q1. At the start of the nineteenth century, most Americans underwent treatment, surgery, gave birth, and nursed their illness at home.
Hospitals in the United States emerged from almshouses, which gave care and provided custody for the poor, sick people. Based on this tradition of charity, hospitals developed; efforts of the community to care for the sick, disabled, and deprived also contributed to the emergence of hospitals (Sultz and Young 68). Q2.Fifty years ago, US hospitals mainly consisted of public hospitals, with few private hospitals put in place.
Therefore, public institutions acted as the main providers of healthcare in America. Hospitals did not have modern surgical tools and equipment as compared to hospitals in US today (Sultz and Young 69). Q3.Newer types of hospital ownership structures exist in the United States of America today. They include for profit hospitals, non profit hospitals, and public hospitals. Hospitals instituted for the motive of profit making consist of private hospitals, run as private institutions.
Non profit hospitals mostly consist of hospitals set by non profit institutions such as non governmental organizations and the community. Public hospitals are owned and run by the government, which sets them up to provide affordable healthcare to the citizens (Sultz and Young 70). Q4.The different types of hospitals in the US include public hospitals, community hospitals, for profit hospitals, and network hospitals. Public hospitals consist of hospitals owned and operated by state, federal, or city governments.
Many of them care for the poor who cannot afford to meet health expenses. They depend on funds from Medicaid payments by state, local, and grants from federal or local government (Sultz and Young 71). Profit hospitals belong to the private sector; owned by investors with the aim of making profits. Community hospitals can be regarded as short term, nonfederal, and special hospitals.
They may also include teaching hospitals or academic medical centers. Network consists of a group of physicians, insurers, hospitals, and community agencies that deliver health services to the community (Sultz and Young 72). Q5.Chuck Grassley is the United States republican senator from Iowa, who has served since 1981.
In early 2009, he proposed legislation that would make sure non profit hospitals account for the annual tax exemptions. Non profit hospitals account for the highest number of hospitals in the United States. The government exempts them from taxation on the basis that they will provide charity and other benefits to the community.
Hew upset many hospitals since he proposed heavy penalties on the hospitals that would not account for the exemptions. These penalties included fines, escalated taxes, and stripping the hospitals of tax exemptions (Sultz and Young 74). Q6.The American hospital association website highlights the main concerns of American hospitals. These concerns include challenges related to shortages in the number of staff (David 94).
This results from the inadequacy of funds to pay salaries of medical staff. As such, most hospitals do not have adequate staff, this leads to difficulties in the provision of healthcare to patients. Another key concern of American hospitals includes the use of modern technological systems in hospitals. Though these devices make hospital work easier, they normally lead to shortages of staff in hospitals (David 98).
Works Cited
David, Stanley. Hospitals: the Journal of American Hospital Association. Michigan: the association, 2011. Print
Sultz, Harry & Young, Kristina. Healthcare USA. London: Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2010. Print.