Introduction
The great paces of the evolution of the modern world pose a number of new challenges that society faces in its development. To be able to continue its growth, it should overcome these problems and find appropriate solutions and approaches. That is why the most important aspects of any community are also being changed at the moment. The appearance of new features is predetermined by the increased demands of individuals who want to enjoy the benefits new approaches might guarantee. In this regard, being the crucial component of any society, the healthcare sector is also being improved nowadays. The U.S health delivery system becomes more and more patient-oriented and tries to satisfy the most complex needs and demands.
Continuum of care
However, despite all alterations and new strategies, nursing continues to play a significant role in the delivery of care to patients. Yet, to make it more efficient new methods are also suggested. For instance, the major criticism of the current healthcare system is its episodic character. It means that patients are provided with care only when they are in an acute position while the promotion of wellness or prevention is ignored. That is why the idea of the continuity of care becomes extremely important nowadays. It is focused on the provision of care that spans an entire lifetime and is composed of services and mechanisms that could help to monitor the state of the health of a certain patient and track him/her over time across all levels of health care (Matthews et al., 2010). The given approach is expected to become more efficient than the existing one because of its ability to mind the unique peculiarities of any person when treating him/her and great attention given to prevention.
ACO
Therefore, there is also the idea of Accountable Care Organization (ACO) that should help to improve the functioning of the modern health care sector. ACO is a group of doctors, hospitals and other health care providers who decide to work together to provide high-quality care to patients who need it (Accountable Care Organizations (ACO), n.d.). The main goal of this very approach is to assure that patients will be offered right care at the right time and it will contribute to the improved performance.
Medical homes
The idea of medical home is also suggested as the new approach to the delivery of health care to patients who need assistance. It could be defined as the team-based model according to which a group of specialist is intended to provide comprehensive and continuous medical care to patients aiming at the acquisition of the improved outcomes (Win, 2016). The given idea should be considered in terms of the continuous care and focus on a patient and his/her needs.
Nurse-managed health clinics
Finally, the nurse-managed health clinics are also created to satisfy the increased peoples demands. This model emphasizes wellness promotion, disease prevention, and management of chronic diseases to guarantee patients recovery and the improvement of their quality of lives. All these models are aimed at the reorganization of the modern healthcare sector.
Nurses feedback
One should also realize the fact that to become efficient all above-mentioned models should be accepted by the health care specialists who have to work under the new conditions and in terms of these new approaches. That is why it is crucial to collect the information about their attitude to the suggested alterations and their understanding of possible outcomes.
For this reason, the following points should be provided. First, having asked three colleagues, we came to the conclusion that they are sure of the great practical importance of these innovations and shifts in priorities. The fact is that the modern approach could be characterized by the sometimes casual attitude to patients who are not in an acute state. In other words, nurses were obliged to provide care only to individuals who are in the attack phase when needs of other ones were very often disregarded. Besides, the shift of priorities will help to devote time to working with patients suffering from chronic diseases. They obviously need assistance to be able to struggle against their illness and preserve the appropriate quality of life. That is why the emphasis on every patient and the monitoring of his/her state at every moment will help to improve the functioning of the health care sector.
The asked nurses are sure that the adherence to this pattern will also result in the appearance of close relations between a patient and nurse that is going to visit him/her to trace the evolution of his/her state. When speaking about ACO, my colleagues are also sure that there are numerous advantages that might result from the exploration of the given pattern and the adherence to the model suggested by it. A team of doctors, nurses, and care providers will be able to function more efficiently in case they know each other and are able to monitor the alterations of a patients state to guarantee the usage of the most appropriate and in-time measures. However, ACO will be efficient only in case all its members are experienced and qualified specialists who know their duties and are ready to work in accordance with the suggested model.
The interviewed nurses also admit the necessity and importance of the additional training that might be needed to reorganize the healthcare sector and assure that new practices will be successful. Nurses responsible for the delivery of care should be provided with the information about their new responsibilities and shift of priorities. Only under these conditions, some improvement could be expected. Finally, the idea of nursing-managed clinics was the most controversial one as the above-mentioned nurses were not sure whether it could be accepted as an appropriate solution or not. The idea that a group of nurses will provide a set of the most important and significant services implies great responsibility which also demands great practical skills and experience.
For this reason, the interviewed specialists are sure that only the most skilled and efficient nurses should be allowed to work in these centers to assure that patients will be provided only with the qualified and high-quality care. However, despite this reasonable objection, they are still sure that in case the above-mentioned conditions are observed, nurse-managed health clinics might become an efficient tool that will contribute to the improvement of the healthcare image among patients. Additionally, the nurses are sure that if the above-mentioned innovations are implemented, every patient will experience the improvement of the quality of his/her life.
Altogether, analyzing the answers of the experienced specialists, it is possible to say that their attitude to the reform is positive. The fact is that they have already recognized the necessity of change as the existing pattern is not efficient enough to guarantee the satisfaction of all patients needs. In this regard, the usage of new practices is met with enthusiasm and optimism. In general, the attitude to the suggested alterations coincides with those predicted by investigators in their works. The majority of researchers are sure that health workers will not oppose the radical reorganization of the whole healthcare sector as the necessity of change is obvious (Mick & Shay, 2016). Very often people remains unsatisfied with the suggested quality of services. Moreover, statistics show that a number of complications and even deaths are preconditioned by the lack of innovative methods, approaches, or tools (Mick & Shay, 2016). Furthermore, the investigation also shows that patients suffering from chronic diseases will obviously benefit from the constant monitoring of their state as the slightest deterioration of their state will be noticed and recorded (Timothy, 2015).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the investigation of the suggested alteration to the modern healthcare sector contributes to the following assumptions. First, these models will obviously help to increase the efficiency of care delivery and contribute to the improvement of patients quality of life. Furthermore, these shifts are accepted by health workers who see the future in it and are sure that the adherence to new practices will help to increase their efficiency. Furthermore, the interviewed nurses also realize the crucial role they should play in the evolution of the health care sector and its reorganization in accordance with new demands. Being the main care providers who establish the relationships with patients and communicate with them, nurses should be able to engage in extra training needed for them to be able to function under new conditions.
References
Accountable Care Organizations (ACO). (n.d.).
Matthews, J., Coe, T., Bruflat, C., Burnet, S., Howard, P., & Peterson, C. (2010). The Patient Lock model©: A continuum of care. Policy Politics Nursing Practice, 11(2), 132-139. Web.
Mick, S., & Shay, P. (2016). Accountable care organizations and transaction cost economics. Medical Care Research and Review, 73(6), 649-659. Web.
Timothy, H. (2015). Different nursing roles in the continuum of care.
Win, A. (2016). The changing face of pharmacies in America: retail clinics. Perspectives in Public Health, 136(3), 130-131. Web.