Question

In 550 words,

Do you think that the federal government should be in charge of health planning related to nursing facilities? Why or why not? In what ways can health planning benefit a community?

Answer 1

The federal government should be the regulating authority for planning related to nursing facilities. All the states around the US are promoting the use of home-based health care and community-based services and thereby helping people to manage the high cost of medical services while continuing to live as independently as possible. Studies prove that in the United States the poor quality care has been an enduring feature of many of the 16,500 residential nursing facilities that provide care to 1.6 million people in the. The Government surveys and data collected by the federal government continue to show that the residents of nursing homes experience problems in their care despite the three decades of public concern.

About 25-33% of nursing homes had serious or potentially life-threatening problems in delivering care and were harming residents in 1998 and 1999. As per the reports of the state inspectors, about 26% of the nation's nursing facilities had poor food hygiene and inadequate care (21%) and 19% of environments that contributed to injuries in residents many of the 18% pressure sores were treated improperly. Many facilities (77%) had problems in subsequent surveys conducted by state licensing and certification agencies.

The poor staffing and lack of standards further add to the problem. The lack of regulations and non-coordination of planning may worsen the problems more. The accountability of the nursing home facilities can be made easy by the centralized regulations by the federal government. The properly organized care has been ensured by federal regulations. A uniformity of care can be ensured by the federal regulations.

·         Number of nursing homes: 15,600 (2014)

·         Proportion of nursing homes with for-profit ownership: 69.8% (2014)

·         Number of licensed beds: 1.7 million (2014)

As per the data in 2014 there are 15,600 nursing homes in the US.

69.8% of the nursing facilities in the US are run by profit-making organizations and most of them own more than one facility. But the non-profit nursing homes are associated with better staffing and higher quality services and they have comparatively a lower probability of death and infection.

The state-wise regulations and policies will not have a coordination. The states must develop regulations based on the Federal government planning for a standardized care. Each state has a licensing and certification agency that inspects facilities that have a contract with the federal government under federal regulations.

Health planning: Benefits to the community

Better care:

The community is the element that is mainly advantaged by the health planning. The effective planning ensures better care for the residents of the nursing facilities.

Standardized care:

The effective staffing and infrastructure ensured as per the health planning by the federal government will also benefit the residents. They will be provided with efficient care. Federal regulations ensure the use of efficient technology in the care of the residents in the nursing facility.

Cost-effectiveness:

The funds provided by the governmental agencies will be made more accountable by the proper regulations. The fiscal resources will be used efficiently.

Freedom:

The residents of the nursing facility will have more freedom in their own settings and the financial burden will be less on the residents.