Globalized healthcare
Practical limits regarding the outsourcing of healthcare provisions will also need to be established. Globalized healthcare consist of two main activities, global medical tourism and outsourcing certain healthcare procedures. The Center for Disease Control, or CDC, (2016) defines medical tourism as “traveling to another country for medical care” and that the most common procedures “include cosmetic surgery, dentistry, and heart surgery.” Many undertake these journeys to find more affordable healthcare, to receive procedures not covered by insurance, to receive treatments that are not currently available in the United States or to return to a home country of they are immigrants. The CDC also warns of risk associated with medical tourism such as communication issues that may result in misunderstandings regarding medical issues, antibiotic resistant bacterial that is more common overseas, and the fact that flying after surgery can increase the risk of blood clots. (CDC, 2016) While evidence suggest that people have traveled across the world for medical purposes for hundreds of years, the modern practice of traveling for surgical treatments began in the 1980’s and 1990s.
Specialization of countries
Many of the first medical tourist were Americans looking for dental care because many procedures such as bridges and implants were not covered by insurance. Central American countries, such as Costa Rica, offered dental care far more affordable than the United States. This trend has continued as up to 40% of today’s medical tourism involves dental care. One country that saw medical tourism as an opportunity was Cuba. Starting in the late 1980s Cuba began welcoming visitors for cosmetic, eye, and heart procedures. Another country that took advantage of the medical tourism wave was Thailand. Thailand offered relatively cheap sex-change operations that brought in patients from around the world. Besides a highly reduced cost, patients were enticed by looser requirements for psychological counseling. Currently many companies are specializing as travel agents for medical tourism and companies in other states are opening up facilities in other countries such as Mexico to attract patients. Some countries are advertising specialties such as orthopedic replacements in New Zealand, while others are offering additional non-medical activities like golf in South Korea. (Pickert, 2008).
Outsourcing services to other countries
A second aspect of globalized medical care involves outsourcing services to medical professionals in other countries. There are several medical services that be completed by nurses or other medical personnel under the direction of a physician that never actually sees the patient. One example is anesthesia. Different forms of anesthesia can be administered by a specialized nurse after specific drugs and dosages are prescribed by a physician. Many American medical institutions have found cost savings by using remote doctors recommend dosages and having nurses administer the anesthesia required for the procedure. Dialysis services is another example of a medical procedure that requires physician oversight but not daily interaction. Physicians can monitor patients information periodically and make changes to procedures if necessary but the act of preparing a patient for dialysis can be completed by other medical professionals.
A third service that can be outsourced is the review of medical imaging such as MRIs. A doctor can review electronic copies of the images and make diagnoses and refer patients from the other side of the world. (Outsourcing is Exploding in Healthcare, 2013) Whether it be medical tourism or outsourcing services, globalized medical care should have a positive affect on the economy. A healthy economy requires a healthy and able population. The World Health Organization (2017) published a report examining the economic consequences of disease and injury. The study noted that unhealthy people have a negative effect on the economy in several ways. One such affect involves the amount of social welfare money spent on providing for those that cannot provide for themselves.
This diverts money from other government programs that could have been used on activities promoting economic growth. Furthermore the unhealthy person’s household is more likely to spend money on goods and services related to healthcare and forgo goods and services that can stimulate and sustain a growing economy. Lastly, unhealthy people are more likely to be unemployed. By doing so, The sick or injured are not contributing to any industries and are not paying any taxes to support local, state and national government programs. In the short term outsourcing medical procedures may negatively affect certain local professionals or agencies but those instances may be few and far between.
The Association of American Medicine (2018) cites a shortage in primary and specialty physicians in the United States. This demand could top 130,000 physicians by the year 2030. Besides a growing population, the population of the United States is also aging. The population of the United States is projected to increase by 11% by the year 2030. At the same time, the population of Americans over the age of 65 is expected to grow by 50%. This aging population will require more frequent medical visits. Not only are the patients getting older, but physicians are as well. Over the next 10 years, over thirty percent of current doctors will be over the age of 65. If many of these doctors retire sooner rather than later, the shortage might even be more severe. A doctor shortage will have several negative effects on patients and in turn the American economy. The first effect would be longer wait times experienced by patients (White, 2018). This wait times will result in more time absent from work and possibly more severe ailments due to treatment not being prompt. A physician shortage can also lead to longer hospital stays due to slow treatment.
On top of effects in the healthcare field, other industries that require physicians, such as expert witnesses, insurance investigations, and consultations, will find doctors harder to find and more expensive than in the past. The ability to outsource some medical procedures will have a positive impact on the economy. The United States will not have enough physicians in the foreseeable future and outsourcing is a way to provide care to as many people as possible. Without outsourcing, the medical care in the United States would suffer greatly resulting in a sick and injured population that cannot be part of the workforce and is a strain on the nation’s resources. Outsourcing health care is a growing and necessary component of our national healthcare system.
Whether it be medical tourism, outsourcing procedures, or telecommunicating, patients are going to be increasingly working with medical professionals in other countries. As changes to the medical field rapidly take place, standards and limitations will need to be adopted and practiced to maintain the high level of care Americans have come to expect. These standards should include regulations on who is providing the medical care, the working conditions and caseload of the health care professional, and contingency plans to involve local physicians should the need arise. One standard that should be adopted is to allow patients to know the identity and qualifications of the medical professional overseeing their care. For example, if a patient is being administered anesthesia prior to a medical procedure by an anesthesiologist nurse, then the patient should be made aware if the overseeing anesthesiologist is on location, or overseas, and what their qualifications are. The same could be said for instances when medical images are being reviewed, a medical facility is overseen by a medical director, or a videoconference examination is taking place.
