Application: Are All Facilities Created Equal?

One of the fundamental functions of health care policy is to improve the overall quality of care that is delivered in hospitals and long-term care facilities. Assuring that every institution and individual health care provider offers the best possible care can be a challenge, as the definition of "quality" can vary greatly among regions, facilities, and providers.

In 2001, the Committee on Quality of Health Care in America at the Institute of Medicine released its landmark report Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century. (US Institute of Medicine, 2001). The report called for nothing less than a complete overhaul of the health care delivery system in the United States.

Four major areas of health care delivery were identified and reviewed: the patient experience; the functioning of health care delivery teams; the functioning of the larger organizations within which the health care delivery teams operate; and the environment in which the organizations operate.

Several organizations have attempted to help better understand the "quality chasm" by developing tools for assessing the relative quality of institutions and their services. These tools are built on standards of care and performance benchmarks allowing for a balanced comparison across facilities and regions.

To prepare for this Application, select an organization that compares acute and long-term care facilities from the list provided. Then, select at least two hospitals or long-term care facilities in your own region to compare.

HealthGrades
http://www.healthgrades.com

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Hospital Compare
http://www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov/hospital-search.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1

The Leapfrog Group
http://www.leapfroggroup.org

UCompareHealthCare.com
http://www.ucomparehealthcare.com/

To complete this Application, write a 3- to 4-page paper that addresses the following:

Select at least two hospitals or long-term care facilities in your own region. Identify and describe the facilities that you selected, including: the type of facility, the locations, the size (number of beds), the facilities' affiliation (independent or part of a health system), and the facilities' area of specialty (if any).

Select four indicators (also known as "measures") from one or more of the websites provided in the Learning Resources that pertain to the facilities you selected above. Define those four indicators (for example: pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital). Compare and contrast those indicators for the facilities you have selected.

Make an argument for the facility you would choose, if you or a family member needed care from a facility. Be sure to clearly explain the reasons for your choice.
Your written assignments must follow APA guidelines. Be sure to support your work with specific citations from this week's Learning Resources and additional scholarly sources, as appropriate. Refer to the Essential Guide to APA Style for Walden Students to ensure your in-text citations and reference list are correct.