Synopses & Reviews
An engaging and clinically applicable work on the principles and structure of the U.S. healthcare system A Doody's Core Title ESSENTIAL PURCHASE!
"Eminently readable...Anyone wanting to gain insight into the forces that shaping health policy and the future of health care will appreciate this book."--Critical Care Nurse Magazine
Understanding Health Policy is the best-written, most informative book available on the subject--and it's the #1 choice for healthcare students and professionals alike. The authors carefully weave key principles, descriptions, and concrete examples into chapters that make important health policy issues both interesting and understandable.
Fully updated to reflect current issues in the ever-changing world of healthcare, the newest edition addresses all the topics that affect you most, from the structure and organization of the industry to issues regarding government and private insurance, to access to healthcare.
Everything you need to understand how the healthcare system works - and your role in it:
- Clinical vignettes in every chapter illustrate key points
- Detailed treatment of both U.S. and international issues
- A complete chapter of review questions
- NEW Expanded coverage of healthcare workers other than physicians
- NEW Closer scrutiny of the pharmaceutical industry
- NEW Brand-new chapter on the medical education system
About the Author
Thomas S. Bodenheimer, MD, is Adjunct Professor, Department of Family & Community Medicine, University of California, San Francisco.
Kevin Grumbach, MD, is Professor and Chair, Department of Family & Community Medicine, University of California, San Francisco.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: The Paradox of Excess and Deprivation
2. Paying for Health Care
3. Access to Health Care
4. Reimbursing Health Care Providers
5. How Health Care is Organized – I
6. How Health Care is Organized – II
7. The Health Care Workforce and the Education of Health Professionals
8. Painful Versus Painless Cost Control
9. Mechanisms for Controlling Costs
10. Quality of Health Care
11. Prevention of Illness
12. Long-Term Care
13. Medical Ethics and the Rationing of Health Care
14. Health Care in Four Nations
15. National Health Insurance
16. Conflict and Change in Americas Health Care System
17. Conclusion: Tensions and Challenges
18. Questions and Discussion Topics