hmgt respm 6

Running head: DISCUSSION 1

DISCUSSION 3

Gabrielle

The future of outpatient care in ambulatory settings. Provide an example

Ambulatory outpatient settings are showing significant growth in the healthcare industry. According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, we consider, “Ambulatory care is care provided by health care professionals in outpatient settings. These settings include medical offices and clinics, ambulatory surgery centers, hospital outpatient departments, and dialysis centers.” It seems to have a promising future with all the technological advances in healthcare, which are used to treat patients without the need for them to be hospitalized.

An example of how important ambulatory (outpatient)healthcare is, was during the COVID-19 pandemic.  The National Library of Medicine shares, “Ambulatory (outpatient) healthcare organizations continue to respond to the COVID-19 global pandemic using an array of initiatives to provide a continuity of care for both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients. “

Identify and explain at least two advantages and two disadvantages of ambulatory care settings.  

 As a patient, the main benefit that I see from an ambulatory healthcare facility is that you receive the care needed, without having to spend the night at the hospital or having to wait for hours to be seen by the emergency department, therefore you receive care in a most effective timely manner. Another benefit is the cost of ambulatory healthcare since it’s usually less expensive in hospitals, making it more cost-efficient.

On the other hand, some disadvantages are that not all treatments or tests are available at ambulatory healthcare facilities, and sometimes, patients end up being referred to the emergency department. Also, the most alarming disadvantage is that they have higher rates of diagnostic testing errors, therefore, making it a liability.

Reference

Ambulatory care. AHRQ. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2022, from  https://www.ahrq.gov/patient-safety/settings/ambulatory/tools.html#:~:text=Ambulatory%20care%20is%20care%20provided,outpatient%20departments%2C%20and%20dialysis%20centers.

Lieneck, C., Ramamonjiarivelo, Z., Cox, J., Dominguez, J., Gersbach, K., Heredia, E., & Khan, A. (2021, October 30).  Patient throughput initiatives in ambulatory care organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review. Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland). Retrieved November 23, 2022, from  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8624418/

Beatrice 

The future of outpatient care in ambulatory settings. Provide an example.

Outpatient care in ambulatory setting currently shows a trend that implies that it will continue to increase in the future. This is due to the observation that most people today are not very concerned with embracing the idea of preventive care in which they can visit health care institutions to have their health status checked and potentially inform the adjustments that may be made in time to improve the quality of their life (AHRQ Ambulatory Care Information, 2019) . As a result, there is need for service expansion to meet the needs of more patients (Ambulatory Care Safety, 2019) . An example is a surgical facility in which patients can conveniently walk and schedule various procedures.

Identify and explain at least two advantages and two disadvantages to ambulatory care settings. 

Advantages

i. Short wait time since procedures are scheduled and patients only visit according to pre-determined dates

ii. Lower overall cost especially due to competition

Disadvantages

i. No overnight stay

ii. Complications require transfers and may lead to fatalities since the facilities are not equipped for more elaborate procedures

References

Ambulatory Care Safety (2019).  AHRQ Ambulatory Care Information PDF.pdf (umgc.edu)

AHRQ Ambulatory Care Information (2019).  Trends in Hospitalization vs Observation Stay for Ambulatory Care–Sensitive Conditions (umgc.edu)

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