Healthcare Policy Flashcards
What is healthcare policy?
- refers to actions and decisions by government bodies and professional organizations that affect whether or not healthcare organizations and individuals working within the healthcare system can achieve their healthcare goals
- focuses on how organizations function within US socioeconomic and political environment
What is policy development affected by?
- population that will benefit
- cost-benefit ratios
- Support for policy
- Client care issues
- Equity of access
- Availability of evidence
What are the three phases of developing health policies?
- formulation
- Implementation
- evaluation
What happens during the formulation phase of health policies?
- similar to assessment and planning
- data collected
- Data used to define problems and identify desired outcomes
What happens during the implementation phase of health policies?
- communication of adopted policies
2. putting policies into action
What happens during the evaluation phase of health policies?
- additional data collected and analyzed
2. Determine the degree to which policy change achieved success
What 2 Federal Health Agencies?
The US Department of Health and Human Services
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
What does the DHHS do?
- administers changes in healthcare policy
- Principal agency for protection of the health of all Americans
- Provides necessary services for those unable to care for themselves
What is the purpose of OSHA?
- works to ensure health and safety thing the workplace
- provides assistance to employees
- Sets issues and standards for a wide variety of hazards
- provides assistance to employers to reduce or eliminate workplace hazards
- information and training materials
- protect workers on the job
- comply with standards that apply to the establishment
- ensure students have and use PPE
What do state agencies oversee?
the regulation of
- county health departments
- healthcare settings
- child care centers
- Clinical laboratories
- Portable x-ray suppliers
- oversee planning and construction of medical facilities
What do local health departments oversee?
- disease monitoring and surveillance
- Child care center sanitation and food safety
- Injury prevention campaigns
- Special supplemental nutrition program for Women, infants, and children (WIC)
What is Joint Commission?
- independent, nonprofit organization
- sets standards for and accredits healthcare organizations
- Mission to continuously improve healthcare to the public
- Ensures that organizations are able to provide safe, effective care for clients
What are the three functional areas addressed by the Joint Commission?
- infection control
- Patient’s rights
- patient treatment
What is the policy development process?
- identify potential policy issue
- Assess the issue by analyzing information
- Build coalitions to achieve information
- Identify possible solutions
- Select a solution
- Implement policy
- Monitor and evaluate outcomes
How do nurses influence policy change?
by working with public officials at local, community, state, and national levels as representatives of professional organizations or as individual citizens
