By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    healthy hobbies
    The Importance of Hobbies for Our Health
    September 15, 2024
    Whiplash
    Understanding Whiplash: A Guide For Healthcare Practitioners
    January 22, 2025
    research chemicals and health care
    Chemical Research Drive Medical Breakthroughs
    June 14, 2023
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Hospitals and Providers Using NHIN (Nationwide Health Information Network)
    March 11, 2012
    Image
    Physicians With High Productivity And Satisfaction Scores Employ Strong Patient-Centered Communication Skills
    May 7, 2013
    My Solution to the Healthcare Crisis
    March 31, 2012
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: The Misconception That American Has The Best Healthcare In The World
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Public Health > The Misconception That American Has The Best Healthcare In The World
BusinessPolicy & LawPublic Health

The Misconception That American Has The Best Healthcare In The World

StephenSchimpff
StephenSchimpff
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE

 

There are many misconceptions about health care and medical care. This includes the discussions over the last few years about healthcare reform but is not limited to those discussions. I plan to write about these over the coming days and weeks in some detail. Here is the first one. “American has the best healthcare system in the world.”
One of the first problems with this statement is that we really have a medical system in America not a healthcare system. We focus on “disease and pestilence” and dealing with acute problems as they arise but paying relatively little attention to disease prevention and health promotion. We spend more per capita on healthcare or, as I have stated just now, medical care on a per capita basis than any other country in the world yet our quality of care is not necessarily better. For example our infant mortality rate at 6.9 deaths per 5,000 births is substantially higher than Japan (2.8) or France (3.9). And our life span which is currently 77.9 years has not kept up with Japan (83) or Switzerland (82).
We all know that vaccines can prevent many very serious illnesses and yet some 20% of infants don’t receive the ones that they should receive by the end of the first year. And although the influenza vaccine had an enormous effect on reducing both morbidity and mortality of this disease, very large numbers of adults, who should know better, don’t bother to get the vaccine each year. Our lifestyles are clearly not what they should be where we largely eat a non-nutritious diet of processed foods in excess quantity, don’t exercise enough, are chronically stressed and 20% of us smoke. The result, among many other things, is obesity with a third of us overweight and a third of us frankly obese. All this leads to multiple chronic illnesses such as diabetes with complications, coronary artery disease, stroke, chronic lung and kidney disease and cancers. Many of us don’t have regular exams to look for very correctable issues such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol or the early diagnosis of cancer. Essentially we have a medical care system that responds reasonably well to acute problems as they arise but a system which is simply not as focused as it needs to be on disease prevention and wellness promotion.
Another reason why our healthcare or medical care system is not what it could be or should be is that we spend all too little time coordinating the care of those who have chronic illnesses. These are diseases which once developed will last a lifetime, are difficult to treat and are inherently expensive to treat. But all too often the quick response in the doctor’s office is to send the patient off for other specialists’ visits, for tests, imaging or a procedure. And when the patient sees the specialist the whole process is repeated again and again. The end result are all too many specialist visits, all too many tests, all too many imaging studies and the same for procedures and even hospitalizations. This is not good quality of care and it’s certainly very expensive care. What is clearly needed is a well coordinated system where one physician serves as the patient’s coordinator for their chronic illness or multiple chronic illnesses addressing all the patient’s needs in an organized manner and sending the patient as needed to various members of multi-specialty teams. This leads to much higher quality yet much lower costs of care.
Following a talk recently I was asked that if America’s healthcare system isn’t all it’s cracked up to be then which country’s system is the best? I had to think about that for a while and in the end I came to the conclusion that we still have the best when compared to everyone else but it really isn’t what is should be or could be. It will only truly be the best when it becomes a true healthcare system rather than a medical care system; when it focuses on prevention extensively; and when the care of chronic illnesses is routinely done in a coordinated fashion through a multi-specialty team. And in the process, it saves us all a lot of money.
TAGGED:US Healthcare
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025
engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

What If We Paid for Patient Recovery?

November 6, 2014

Obesity and its Growing Prevalence Globally

February 14, 2011
corporate wellness programs
BusinessPolicy & LawPublic HealthWellness

Wellbeing Starts in the C-Suite

March 17, 2014

States Increasingly Concerned of Possible Changes to Medigap Policy

September 19, 2011
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?