Assessment Description
Examine changes introduced to reform or restructure the U.S. health care delivery system. In a 1,000-1,250 word paper, discuss action taken for reform and restructuring and the role of the nurse within this changing environment.
Include the following:
Outline a current or emerging health care law or federal regulation introduced to reform or restructure some aspect of the health care delivery system. Describe the effect of this on nursing practice and the nurse\’s role and responsibility.
Discuss how quality measures and pay for performance affect patient outcomes. Explain how these affect nursing practice and describe the expectations and responsibilities of the nursing role in these situations.
Discuss professional nursing leadership and management roles that have arisen and how they are important in responding to emerging trends and in the promotion of patient safety and quality care in diverse health care settings.
Research emerging trends. Predict two ways in which the practice of nursing and nursing roles will grow or transform within the next five years to respond to upcoming trends or predicted issues in health care.
You are required to cite a minimum of three sources to complete this assignment. Sources must be published within the last 5 years, appropriate for the assignment criteria, and relevant to nursing practice.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. A link to the LopesWrite technical support articles is located in Class Resources if you need assistance.
Health Care Delivery Models and Nursing Practice
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Health Care Delivery Models and Nursing Practice
Introduction
The United States healthcare system has undergone several changes aimed at improving the quality of healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. The reforms also aim at improving public health as well as preventing diseases and medical disorders. Quality healthcare delivery is the main goal of every healthcare professional (Roux, 2017). The reforms ensure everyone receives quality care by eliminating, preventing, or reducing discrimination, prejudice, and stereotypes in the health care system. The government is a major stakeholder in the health care system. Therefore, the government plays a significant role to ensure that citizens receive effective and efficient health care services. Nurses are also involved in the reforms in one way or the other. The nursing role has significantly evolved from bedside to advocacy. Health policies can restructure or reform any area in the health care system, such as reimbursement methods, health insurance, health care delivery process, and others (Roux, 2017). The purpose of this paper is to a healthcare reform, quality measures, professional nursing leadership and management roles, and emerging trends in nursing.
The Federal Health Care Law
The U.S. healthcare system has undergone several reforms that have significantly improved care delivery. One of the federal laws and the most common one that has had a significant influence on the health care system is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Sommers et al., 2017). This law is also called the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or Obama Care. It is one of the laws in the U.S currently that has brought along a lot of benefits to low-income individuals (Sommers et al., 2017). The main aim of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was to ensure that all Americans have health insurance coverage to allow them to gain access to health care services.
The Affordable Care Act improves healthcare costs to enhance access to health care. Cost of care is the main barrier that hinders access to health care among the low-income families in the United States (Sommers et al., 2017). It is the most important health care law ever passed in the United States since the enactment of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. The law has promoted nursing practice, as well as the roles and responsibilities of nurses by promoting accessibility, affordability, and equality in health care. According to Sommers et al. (2017), since the ACA was signed into law by President Obama, the cost of care has reduced, making health care affordable and accessible. Also, the quality of health care has improved since the enactment of the law.
The nurse’s roles and responsibilities have improved through the ACA. For instance, the health policy improved the coordination of healthcare services leading to reduced waiting time as well as more effective care delivery (Sommers et al., 2017). Through proper care coordination, inconveniences such as repeated diagnoses, unnecessary hospitalization, and multiple prescriptions have been reduced. The ACA has impacted positively nurses by promoting nurse-physician collaboration to ensure nurses perform their roles and responsibilities effectively (Sommers et al., 2017). Therefore, the Affordable Care Act has improved almost all important areas in the healthcare system to ensure equality in accessibility, affordability, and quality of health care.
Impact of Quality Measures and Pay for Performance on Patient Outcomes
Pay per performance is a reward system for health practitioners per their performance based on certain criteria in the field of healthcare. Quality measures are tools that health professionals use to measure the quality of health care processes, care outcomes, and organizational systems to promote high-quality care (Mendelson et al., 2017). Quality health measures can help determine shortages or areas of improvement in health care to enhance, promote, and improve patient outcomes. Nurses have a significant role in improving the quality of health care (Mendelson et al., 2017). For example, nurses assist in conducting continuous evaluation and assessment of healthcare processes as well as implementing interventions to address complicated issues.
Pay for performance is among the most common payment methods in healthcare. It is a performance-based compensation approach whose objective is to improve the quality and delivery of services as well as patient outcomes (Mendelson et al., 2017). As a result of the increasing cost of health care and the need to ensure equality and access to healthcare, pay per performance was developed to try and address these issues (Mendelson et al., 2017). The model also punishes practitioners for poor performance. The pay-for-performance model improves patient outcomes because it compels and motivates doctors and nurses to provide quality care to ensure they receive their payment based on quality performance (Mendelson et al., 2017). Therefore, both quality measures and pay for performance improve patient outcomes.
Professional Nursing Leadership and Management Roles
Healthcare is dynamic and has greatly evolved over the past decades. While other aspects of healthcare are changing, the leadership aspect has also been evolving at the same time. As a result, new leadership styles have emerged and continue to emerge to improve the overall industry (Roux, 2017). Nursing leadership and management roles that have emerged include accountability, responsiveness, and engagement. Nursing leaders should be accountable for their actions. They must also maintain that accountability among employees (Roux, 2017). Leaders are also expected to be responsible to ensure they perform their roles and duties appropriately.
Engagement or commitment should not lack among the qualities of a good leader. Nurse leaders should always ensure they remain committed to their roles and responsibilities. These leadership styles will help them adapt to new changes that emerge in healthcare (Roux, 2017). For example, technological advances in healthcare require nurse leaders who are responsible and committed to ensuring all members are updated. Nurse leaders must organize proper training for the nurses to update their skills.
Emerging Trends in Nursing
The American healthcare system has experienced significant changes over the years which have transformed the industry-leading to better care delivery and patient outcomes. Nursing and nurse roles have also evolved and more changes are expected in the future (Roux, 2017). For instance, specialization is an emerging trend in nursing. In the future, nurses will be specializing in different specialties such as gerontology, anesthetic, psychiatry, and others. General nursing maybe come inferior and specialized nursing becomes more popular, on-demand, and lucrative. Another emerging trend is telemedicine (Roux, 2017). This area of healthcare is expected to become more established in the future.
Conclusion
Healthcare is dynamic and has been evolving over several years. American health care has experienced several reforms through legislation. One of the federal laws and the most common one that has had a significant influence on the health care system is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. It is considered one of the most significant reforms ever seen in the American health care system. Quality measures and performance pay positively impacted the healthcare system. Both have the objective of improving the quality of care delivery and patient outcomes. Nurse leaders have a significant role to play in healthcare reform. Specialization and telemedicine are expected to shape the future of nursing.
References
Mendelson, A., Kondo, K., Damberg, C., Low, A., Motúapuaka, M., Freeman, M., … & Kansagara, D. (2017). The effects of pay-for-performance programs on health, health care use, and processes of care: a systematic review. Annals of Internal Medicine, 166(5), 341-353. https://doi.org/10.7326/M16-1881
Roux, G. (2017). Issues and trends in nursing. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Sommers, B. D., Maylone, B., Blendon, R. J., Orav, E. J., & Epstein, A. M. (2017). Three-year impacts of the Affordable Care Act: improved medical care and health among low-income adults. Health Affairs, 36(6), 1119-1128. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2017.0293