Nursing Chapter 2: Health Care Delivery System

Study Notes

Four challenges facing nursing: aging baby boomer generation, shortage and uneven distribution of physicians, rate of nurses’ retirements, and uncertainty of health care reform.

Traditional levels of health care: preventative, primary, secondary, tertiary, restorative, and continuing health care.

Primary and preventive health care services: primary health care focuses on improved health outcomes for an entire population, requires collaboration among health professionals, health care leaders, and community members; health promotion programs designed to reduce the incidence of disease; and preventive care focused on reducing and controlling risk factors for disease.
Secondary and tertiary care: hospitals, intensive care, mental health facilities, rural hospitals, and discharge planning.
Restorative care: home care, rehabilitation, and extended care facilities.
Continuing care: nursing centers or facilities, assisted living, respite care, adult day care centers, and palliative and hospice care.

Health care costs and quality: patient satisfaction, nursing shortage, and competency.
Patient-centered care: respect for patient’s values, preferences, and expressed needs; coordination and integration of care; information and education; physical comfort; emotional support and alleviation of fear and anxiety; involvement of family and friends; and continuity and transition.
Magnet recognition program: nursing-sensitive outcomes.
Technology in health care: robotics, telemedicine, and electronic health records.
Health care disparities: economic stability, education, health and health care, neighborhood and built environment, and social and community context.

The current system is in a constant state of change.
Predictions for the future health care system: consumer-centered, increased use of telehealth and digital care, decreased office visits, and increased use of artificial intelligence for early detection and better understanding of disease progression.