The healthcare system is grappling globally with rising costs and uneven quality of healthcare services. Previously, quality healthcare service was only available to those who could afford it in the facility. As a result, many people have suffered significant losses in terms of healthcare, which resulted in a progressive reduction in the population’s general health (Collins & Saylor, 2018). Healthcare policy is helping the transition from a fee-for-service approach where physicians are reimbursed for services provided to a value-based model where providers are compensated for achievement to enhance patients’ health results. In a value-based system, healthcare professionals are rewarded based on the quality of their services instead of the volume of the services. Therefore, healthcare policy has an impact on the roles of healthcare professionals and their contribution to the sector.
The Impact of Current Policy
The current policy exists to improve the quality of services provided by healthcare professionals. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has provisions aimed at solving existing health issues (Collins & Saylor, 2018). To regulate the health services provided in practically all facilities, several recommendations outline how patients are managed for a specific illness. The necessity to standardize the types of care provided in various facilities has enabled healthcare professionals to improve the quality of care. In addition, the policy has advocated for paying for the quality of healthcare services rather than the quantity. As a result, the quality of healthcare services provided by nurses, physicians, and other healthcare professionals has considerably improved in the industry.
ACA promotes the advancement of education among healthcare providers to enhance healthcare quality. Nurses, physicians, and other healthcare workers benefit from programs that encourage them to further their studies and obtain higher credentials (Collins & Saylor, 2018). As a result, when compared to their previous qualifications, the quality of treatment provided by these healthcare professionals has improved due to further learning and attaining better certifications. In addition, as health providers choose evidence-based practice informed by new research, study advances have improved the quality of care globally. Thus, the main aim of the policy is to make sure that healthcare providers have the requisite skills to enable them to offer quality healthcare services to patients.
ACA as a policy has encouraged nurses, practitioners, and professionals to take on positions in transformative leadership and care coordination. Nurses have been identified as key stakeholders in the healthcare system, and their power to influence change in the direction of cost reduction, quality improvement, and enhanced healthcare access has been recognized by the act (Collins & Saylor, 2018). The primary emphasis of a healthcare practitioner is on the patient, and the primary goal is to enhance the patient’s health results. As a result, healthcare professionals must take full professional responsibility for their patients’ assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis. While the area of practice for nurses, in particular, is continually evolving, nurse education must also develop at a quick rate.
A Fee-For-Service System and A Value-Based Care System
The most common healthcare systems are fee-for-service and value-based. A fee-for-service model is one in which patients and consumers are charged depending on their services, such as tests, medications, and appointments. On the other hand, a value-based care system is a health care model based on the quality of the health care given to people (Schuchman et al., 2018). The distinctions between healthcare providers using the two healthcare systems are readily noticeable because they are all trying to achieve the goals of the healthcare services system for which they are providing patient care.
The primary distinction between health care providers who use a fee-for-service model and those who apply a value-based care system is the level of service they provide to their patients. Health professionals in value-based care systems guarantee that their clients obtain high-quality, patient-centered, evidence-based health care (Schuchman et al., 2018). They commit their time to patient care and deliver high-quality services that meet both the patient’s aspirations and their health needs. Because a favorable prognosis from therapy motivates these physicians to provide their services, they invest in evidence-based patient care. Health professionals that deliver value-based care are more concerned with the well-being of their patients than with financial implications.
The approach to care by healthcare providers in a fee-for-service system differs from those using a value-based service system. In the healthcare system, there are some health issues that may be alleviated or aggravated by a variety of lifestyle or environmental factors, and the patient may be unaware of the impact (Schuchman et al., 2018). As a result, the patient is more prone to interact with aggravating factors while ignoring the effects. In a fee-for-service paradigm, healthcare providers do not focus on prevention. As a result, the patient is more likely to incur treatment costs due to recurring illnesses that may be avoided if lifestyle or environmental adjustments were made. On the other hand, providers concentrate on preventative health to improve patient health outcomes in a value-based system.
The actions of healthcare providers in the two systems have a different impact on access to healthcare services. The fee-for-services healthcare system restricts access to quality healthcare services because it makes services costly (Schuchman et al., 2018). It also raises physician incentives based on the number of patients treated. In this system, healthcare providers are more concerned with the incentives they receive during care. However, the value-based strategy encourages high-quality healthcare because consumers pay for the whole service based on the outcome (Schuchman et al., 2018). Since they are reimbursed for the quality of therapy delivered rather than the number of patients serviced, clinicians in the value-based health care system are more focused on patients’ conditions.
Healthcare providers play an integral in the determination of cost. Fee-for-service framework motivates providers to fill as many beds as possible and conduct many high-tech medical procedures (Schuchman et al., 2018). Although this helps in driving up the cost of healthcare, it does not promote the health and well-being of the patient. The main focus of healthcare providers in this system is to drive cost. On the other hand, in a value-based system, providers prioritize more on the health and well-being of patients rather than cost (Schuchman et al., 2018). This approach is designed around patients and ensures that providers exist to provide quality healthcare services. Healthcare teams major on needs, whether preventive, chronic, or acute. Therefore, as opposed to a fee-for-service system, the value-based system majors in delivering quality care.
The Shared Power Between Physicians and Nurses
Nurses and physicians are the foundations of any health sector. The ability of physicians and nurses to share power is critical to ensuring smooth operations and patient care (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). This is because they can effectively collaborate and ensure that patients receive quality care. It is critical to establish a clear separation between the powers of nurses and physicians and a well-defined plan of tasks in an entity. In addition, this assists the organization in dealing with difficulties such as disobedience, failing to perform the tasks assigned, and poor patient care that may develop (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). In a healthcare system, shared power between physicians and nurses guarantees that patients are cared for consistently.
Nurses and physicians can work together to reduce medical errors. Nurse specialists understand the problems influencing patient care outcomes in specific disease contexts (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). This knowledge is extremely useful in policy development and strategic planning for value-based care. On the other hand, physicians have the skills to prevent, diagnose, and treat patients. As a result, nurses and physicians work together to achieve the common aim of better health outcomes for individuals and communities (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). They provide thoughts and ideas based on their own experiences and training, and they collaborate with other experts to develop viable approaches to improving healthcare. Thus, these providers have the ability to work together to enhance the quality of healthcare services.
In addition, nurses and physicians collaborate to improve the efficiency of their operations in the healthcare sector. Nurses in positions of authority have the ability to impact strategy change in both healthcare and non-healthcare businesses (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). They create and push for change via education and development of policies and employ effective evidence-based projects. Nurses and physicians depend on one another and work together as a team to improve healthcare delivery. The workflow is efficient, and the outcomes are outstanding when both the nurse and the physician concur on their specialized roles (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). Power-sharing between nurses and physicians is crucial in any health care environment since they do so much work and provide so much patient care.
The shared power between nurses and physicians has a positive impact on care. The physician collaborates with nurses to give the best care (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). Referrals to additional services that the patient may require are part of the collaboration. Nurses work on reports about patients’ conditions and demands sent by physicians to other services such as physical therapy, home health care, and other specialists. Furthermore, physicians and nurses collaborate to educate patients, family, and support personnel on the patient’s condition, diagnosis, and treatment. Patients can use the tools provided by their doctor and nurse, such as data, to make informed decisions about their treatment plan (Hossny & Sabra, 2021). Physicians routinely teach residents, physician assistants, advanced practice nurses, and others about their area of specialization.
Conclusion
The choice of the healthcare system is integral because it determines the cost of care and benefits of services. The fee-for-service system prioritizes quantity over quality; patients and payers constantly pay for numerous health procedures organized by providers. The implementation of the value-based health system, on the other hand, aided in providing quality services by reducing the number of services to the most important ones during care. This enables the providers to achieve the intended health outcomes, and patients get value for their money. Healthcare personnel in a value-based system are centered on patients and seek to deliver the best care since their remuneration is dependent on the patients’ results.
References
Collins, B. L., & Saylor, J. (2018). The Affordable Care Act: Where are we now? Nursing2020, 48(5), 43-47. Web.
Hossny, E. K., & Sabra, H. E. (2021). The attitudes of healthcare professionals towards nurse-physician collaboration. Nursing Open, 8(3), 1406-1416. Web.
Schuchman, M., Fain, M., & Cornwell, T. (2018). The resurgence of home-based primary care models in the United States. Geriatrics, 3(3), 41. Web.