Stakeholders Compare and Contrast

Stakeholders Compare and Contrast

Introduction

In every industry the global trending requires for some amount of competition to ensure that the quality of product and services delivered to each of the industries and to consumers is the best and profit is accumulated in the most efficient manner. Health care sector has been always under the precedence of being a social cause sector and these days there is an ongoing debate to make it competitive enough to serve the appropriate needs of the market demand. However, there have been conflicting views on the selection of a model appropriate to introduce upon the various changes and competitive edge for the sector. The more the conflicts the more are the views of the stakeholders. Thus, it is essential for the health care sector to be clearer on the kind of administrative adaptation it desire to make. This paper attempts to analyze the competitive nature of the Health care sector, throw light upon the potential form of conflicting ideas that germinate and at the same time assess the possible hindrances that arise during the delivery mechanism.

                                          Visions of the competition

The current global dynamics have led the health care sector in turmoil to choose from the very contrasting models- traditional social care model and the market based economic model. Both these models are extreme in nature and the current health care sector is somewhere between this. Such models are essential to understand the opportunities available to the health care sectors and policy makers to ensure that health care sector develops and achieves greater heights (Blumstein, (n.d)). It is the social traditional model that calls for health care system to be economical in nature in order to make it available to all without discrimination. However there exists a policy issue wherein it is essential to ensure that the health care delivered is of a quality suitable to pricing afforded by the patient. This posed as a hindrance as it did not allow for the fact that the credit issue may arise and make it difficult for the health care providers to carry the burden of the health care sector and eventually it required to be transferred upon the patients. On the other hand market based economic model calls for the medical treatment providers to compete on price level to provide their facility which will help in ensuring the best and the most competitive treatment for the patients.

Stake holders are often the patients, health care providers, government, policy makers and the insurance providers. In interest of all it can be seen to have to be the best model as that of market based economic model as it is in line with the ability of the purchasing power of the patient (Rivers, 2008).

The nature of Competition in Health care

The usual principles involved in the health care competition are price, quality, convenience and superior products and services. The new competition is in the field of technology and innovation. The competition is majorly for the simple reason to reduce the health care cost and reduce the inefficiencies. However, it was seen that the public and private health providers paid for the three-quarters of the health care bills (Fuch, 1998). The competition in the health care system is now of zero-sum game based, wherein everyone is involved in dividing value instead of creating value. Hospitals and insurers have more dominant role in the insurer market. The market players have no guarantee of increasing patient flow and reducing the cost of health care.

Issues of Conflicts in the system

Data Infrastructure: this is the area where there is the most necessity for the health care system to concentrate in making it efficient and viable to the people. It is essential for every organisation within the system to update and create the most essential aspect of data infrastructure to help in the future for advancement and research and in order to be able to track down all the patients, illnesses and advancement in medical science. Thus the potential steps that are required in this field are to invest in data infrastructure, create unique identification models for patients, and be able to source and access data in real time basis (Blumstein, (n.d)).

Coverage and Payment:  the most essential platform of that has multi –stake holders involved is the field of coverage and payment. Here most of the conflicts arise simply due to the fact that there are various schemes and less payment modes made available to the patients. Thus the goal should be to create a framework of standardisation in which it will be easy for the stakeholders to get involved and they may find some kind of incentivisation in that field. Novel provider payment models need to be identified and worked upon and at the same time transparency and reliability of the entire model needs to be enhanced (Blumstein, (n.d)).

Communication: it is the basic tool of success for any industry. Lack of appropriate communication hindrances the entire delivery system in its wake. The communication system requires being cross-cutting and should be able to help in increasing the value of innovation. It is the timely communication of the information to the patients and the providers and other stakeholders that will help in alignment of the funds and ensure that appropriate means and technology is used to help the patient out of its dilemma. Thus, it is essential for these conflicts to be addressed in a manner such that it will help ensure that all the stakeholders are indeed benefitted from the solution (Avalere Health LLC, 2013).

Collaboration of the Stakeholder interest

It is essential to understand that the growth of the healthcare sector is solely dependent upon the culmination of stakeholder’s interests. It is essential as Kupferberg puts it, “Doctors view each dollar that a health insurance company makes as one less dollar that they need, but insurers who pay physicians think of it as one less buck that they make.” The current scenario is such that instead of collaborating stakeholder’s are competing in ferocious manner with each other to achieve their interest. Thus, it is necessary to take the evidence based approach in the hospitals towards the diagnosis of patients and treating them.

Conclusion

Thus, to conclude we can say that the competition in the health care sector is necessary to improve quality and reduce cost, but the need is to ensure that all the stakeholders benefit from this. Thus collaboration of these interests and partnerships is the need of the hour.

References

Avalere Health LLC. (2013). Delivering Value in Healthcare: A Multi-Stakeholder Vision for Innovation. Washinton DC: Avalere Health LLC.

Blumstein, J. F. (n.d.). HEALTH CARE REFORM AND CONFLICTING VISIONS OF MEDICAL CARE: ANTITTRUST AND STATE PROVIDER LEGISLATON. CORNELL LAW REVIEW , 1459-1509.

et.al, G. B. (2003). Data storage and DNA banking for biomedical research: informed consent, confidentiality, quality issues, ownership, return of benefits. A professional perspective. European Journal of Human Genetics.

Patrick A Rivers, S. H. (2008). Health care competition, strategic mission, and patient satisfaction: research model and propositions. Health Organ managment , 627-641.

V.Fuch. (1998). The competition: revolution in health care. Health Affairs , 23, 5-24.