Providing high-quality healthcare to citizens while also being responsive to the population’s justifiable demands is a worldwide goal shared by health systems. A health system’s performance can be impacted by various variables, including the wealth and cultural makeup of the nation. I will compare the health systems in two different communities for this journal assignment. I will compare and contrast how the systems affect or benefit their residents and assess whether they successfully carry out the essential duties of healthcare systems. I will discuss which system I believe is superior and why.
The American health system will be my first object of analysis. The US has a market-based healthcare system, meaning for-profit businesses deliver medical services. Despite having the highest per capita healthcare spending in the world, the US ranks 37th globally in terms of life expectancy (Papanicolas et al., 2018). The US has a higher infant mortality rate than other developed nations. The US healthcare system’s high cost is one of its biggest issues. This is because there is a lot of administrative waste and expensive medical supplies and procedures. The US healthcare system is also not very effective. For instance, a study found that if the US health system was as effective as the health systems in Canada and Western Europe, it could save $158 billion annually.
The National Health Service of the United Kingdom is the second health system I will examine (NHS). All UK citizens have access to free health care at the point of service through the NHS, a publicly funded healthcare system. According to the World Health Organization, the NHS is the best healthcare system in the world (Miles et al., 2021). The NHS’s high efficiency level is one factor contributing to its effectiveness. For instance, the NHS has a higher life expectancy and spends less per person on healthcare than the US. Additionally, the NHS excels at preventive care, which helps people stay healthy and away from hospitals.
The American healthcare system is designed for financial gain. Private insurance companies are driven by a desire to profit, so they frequently balk at covering medical expenses. People might not be able to get the care they require as a result of this. Since the NHS in the United Kingdom is a public system, taxpayers are responsible for paying for it. As a result, the government is more likely to spend money on public health initiatives and care for all citizens. The US healthcare system is frequently criticized for its high costs, limited access to care, and subpar results. The NHS in the United Kingdom is frequently lauded for its low costs, accessibility to care for all people, and successful outcomes. However, the NHS is dealing with issues like an aging population and a staffing shortage.
The NHS, in my opinion, is a superior healthcare system because it is more effective and efficient at serving its population’s needs. The NHS is also significantly less expensive than the US healthcare system, which is significant because it means that more people can afford to receive the treatment they require.
In conclusion, providing high-quality healthcare to citizens while also being responsive to the population’s justifiable demands is a goal shared by health systems worldwide. A health system’s performance can be impacted by a variety of variables, including the wealth and cultural makeup of the nation. I have compared the health systems in two different communities for this journal assignment. I have compared and contrasted the systems to determine whether they are harming or benefiting their citizens and whether they are successfully carrying out the essential duties of healthcare systems. Because the NHS is more effective and efficient at serving its citizens’ needs, I think it is the superior health system.
References
Miles, D. K., Stedman, M., & Heald, A. H. (2021). “Stay at Home, Protect the National Health Service, Save Lives”: A cost benefit analysis of the lockdown in the United Kingdom. International Journal of Clinical Practice, 75(3), e13674.
Papanicolas, I., Woskie, L. R., & Jha, A. K. (2018). Health care spending in the United States and other high-income countries. Jama, 319(10), 1024-1039.
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