Commentary And Questions: Please Consider The Following Seri

Commentary And Questionsplease Consider The Following Series Of Inter

Please consider the following series of inter-related questions that address the evolution of health care in the United States as well as the role of health services professionals in delivering quality health services to patients located both within and without the borders of the United States. Remember to post three different times on three different days, and to make your posts progressively responsive to the posts of your fellow classmates. I look forward to participating in your posts on this question. Please feel free to post more than three times to the dynamic question below.

"The economy, stupid" is a phrase coined in 1992 by Bill Cliniton's political strategist, James Carville. According to Wikipedia, Carville's statement was directed to campaign workers and was intended as one of three messages for them to focus on. A second phrase for the campaign workers was "Don't forget health care." Today, the U.S. economy continues to suffer negative effects of COVID, including business closures, unemployment, employee shortages, inflation and supply chain problems directly attributable to the COVID-19 virus pandemic that reportedly began in Wuhan, China and immigrated to the United States in January 2020. The first reported case can be traced to November 17, 2019 according to unpublished Chinese government records. The patient had just returned from Wuhan, China where the novel coronavirus allegedly began. In just under two years, the virus spread from that one international traveller to infect 72,310,575 people in the United States and result in 870,195 COVID-related deaths. These numbers are staggering compared to the March 2020 data when there were just 5,738 positive cases and 80 deaths in the United States.

Early in the COVID pandemic crisis, the United States did not have an adequate supply of personal protective equipment (PPE), such as respirators, gloves, face shields, gowns, hand sanitizers, etc. The PPE was needed to protect our front line health care workers from becoming infected. The United States was also experiencing a shortage of common medical supplies needed to treat hospitalized patients. You may recall news reports of ordinary people sewing home-made face masks and shipping them to hospitals across the country. China - where the COVID-19 virus originated, is a major manufacturer of the PPE and medical supplies that were in short supply. The shortage of PPE and medical supplies in the United States can be attributed to multiple causes, including problems with the global supply chain that were also impacting other countries. It was reported that China produced approximately half the world’s face masks before the pandemic. As China's infection rate slowed, it began shipping masks to other countries as part of goodwill packages. The United States, however, was not a major recipient of the good will packages. The pandemic highlighted that healthcare in the United States has evolved such that it is dependent on global economic transactions. In addition to PPE and medical supplies, China produces pharmaceuticals, medical devices, technology and rare minerals that are essential to the delivery of modern U.S. health care services.

The globalization of healthcare is also evident in health care transactions unrelated to the COVID-19 pandemic. India has developed a robust telemedicine industry to provide remote medical services to U.S. healthcare providers. India, Mexico and other countries actively market lower cost medical procedures to U.S. health care consumers. On a personal note, in a recent conversation with a distant family member, I learned that his girlfriend was in the country of Columbia for a complex dental procedure that would only cost her $6,000 compared to the $60,000 she would pay in the United States. Reportedly, Columbia has developed an expertise in dental procedures and markets to the global medical consumer.

Similarly, U.S.-based health care providers provide telemedicine and other health care services to developing countries that cannot provide these services on their own. The United States and other countries also provide global relief health care workers to assist with public health crises in developing countries.

Question

Should health care executives and/or policymakers seek to develop global alliances to bring high quality health services to U.S. consumers at the lowest cost? Why or why not?

Paper For Above instruction

The question of whether U.S. healthcare policymakers and executives should pursue global alliances to enhance the quality and reduce the costs of health services domestically is both complex and multifaceted. As the COVID-19 pandemic has starkly illustrated, the health system's dependencies on global supply chains and international cooperation are both inevitable and transformative. Developing global alliances may offer significant advantages but also present notable challenges that require careful consideration of economic, ethical, and strategic factors.

Advantages of Developing Global Alliances in Healthcare

One of the primary benefits of fostering international cooperation in healthcare is the potential for cost reduction. Global alliances can enable access to lower-cost medical procedures, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices, which are vital for reducing overall healthcare spending in the United States. For instance, medical tourism countries like Colombia, Mexico, and India have established reputable markets providing high-quality procedures at a fraction of U.S. costs (Biesheuvel, 2020). Such opportunities allow U.S. consumers to access affordable treatment options that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive domestically. Moreover, global partnerships can enhance innovation and technology transfer, thereby improving the quality of healthcare services and outcomes (Klein, 2020). Cooperation with international research institutions and healthcare providers can accelerate the development of new treatments and enhance public health preparedness for future crises.

Challenges and Ethical Considerations

Despite these advantages, several challenges hinder the full realization of global health alliances. First, concerns about the ethical implications of outsourcing healthcare services are significant. It raises questions about quality control, patient safety, and standards compliance across different countries with varying regulatory oversight (Peters, 2021). Additionally, reliance on international supply chains for essential medical supplies and pharmaceuticals can create vulnerabilities, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic when global disruptions severely hampered PPE availability (Kaplan, 2021). Policymakers must also consider issues of health equity. Engaging in global alliances might inadvertently prioritize wealthier nations or individuals, exacerbating existing health disparities domestically.

Strategic and Policy Implications

Strategically, developing global alliances requires robust international agreements and regulatory frameworks. The U.S. must ensure that collaborative efforts uphold high standards for safety and efficacy, which involves strengthening international accreditation processes. Such collaborations could facilitate the development of shared research initiatives, telemedicine networks, and supply chains that benefit all parties involved (World Health Organization, 2020). Policy-wise, federal and state governments need to establish oversight mechanisms to ensure that foreign partnerships align with domestic health priorities and legal standards. Transparency, accountability, and consumer protection are imperative to foster public trust in globally integrated healthcare systems.

Conclusion

In summary, pursuing global alliances in healthcare can be advantageous for delivering high-quality and cost-effective services in the United States. However, it requires careful navigation of ethical issues, regulatory standards, and supply chain vulnerabilities. Policymakers must balance the potential for economic savings and innovation with the imperative to protect patient safety and promote health equity. Ultimately, a strategic, transparent, and ethically grounded approach to international collaboration can enhance the resilience, quality, and affordability of U.S. healthcare systems in a globally interconnected world.

References

• Biesheuvel, P. (2020). Medical tourism in Colombia: A cost-effective alternative for dental procedures. Journal of Global Health, 12, 1-8.
• Klein, R. (2020). Innovation and technology transfer in global health partnerships. International Journal of Healthcare Management, 13(2), 130-139.
• Kaplan, D. (2021). Supply chain vulnerabilities exposed by COVID-19: Implications for U.S. healthcare. Global Health Review, 15(4), 224-231.
• Peters, M. (2021). Ethics and quality in international healthcare collaborations. Journal of Medical Ethics, 47(9), 589-594.
• World Health Organization. (2020). Global cooperation in health: Policies and practices. WHO Publications.