January 28, 2010 – 5:25 am
Over the past decade many governmental entities and private organizations have tried to quantify the quality of healthcare in America. The bottom line is that there is wide variance in the quality and cost of healthcare through the United States. It is hoped that by tracking the results of the various studies that are being conducted around the country, that the quality of healthcare can be improved while the increase in the cost of care can be restrained.
The California Healthcare Foundation has sponsored a comparative study which compares the quality of California Healthcare to that in the rest of the Nation. If the state of California were in school it would receive a ‘C’ for the performance of its healthcare system, compared to the rest of the nation.
California outperforms the National average in:
- Maternity and child healthcare
- Hospital care of patients with heart problems and pneumonia
- Cancer rates and cancer mortality rates
California underperforms the National average in:
- Care for geriatric patients
- Nursing home quality of care
- Diabetes diagnosis and treatment
California has about average care in:
- Hospital re-admission rates
- Improvement in hospital treatment of Pneumonia and Heart disease
- Home healthcare providers
In the years covered by the study (2001 – 2005), the average annual increase in healthcare costs was 6.5 %, while the increase in quality of healthcare grew only 1.4%. This suggests that there is room for improvement in the cost effectiveness of healthcare throughout the Nation.
The most interesting result of the study is that California outperforms the National average in the care of the younger portion of the population. California scored high in care of expectant mothers, infants, and children. California performed well on measures related to pre-natal care, low birth weight, and low infant mortality rates. California ranked high in birth-related traumas, immunization levels for children, and reduction in admission rates of certain pediatric conditions.
Treatment for cancer and heart related conditions are at the national level of care, or slightly above the national average. Measures of standard of care in surgical treatment in hospitals and outpatient care are inline with the national averages.
At the other end of the population age scale the State under performed in most categories of geriatric care. The number of seniors receiving vaccinations is below the national average. End of life care i
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