post from health care student from another university

As a student majoring in health care administration at UW-Milwaukee, I understand how complicated long-term health care can be. Looking at my future career path, medical and health services managers must be prepared to deal with the integration of healthcare delivery systems, technological innovations, an increasingly complex regulatory environment, restructuring of work, and an increased focus on preventive care as the industry continues to rapidly change. Health care administrators are also being looked up to for advice on how to improve the efficiency in healthcare facilities and the quality of the care provided. This puts a lot of pressure on the members in my field to understand the complex healthcare system to recommend the most effective solutions available. Everyone seems to be affected by the regulations put on long-term health care at some point in their lives in some way or another, which is why it is such an important subject to address.

Personally in my family, my grandmother had to go into a nursing home in Brookfield after her second stroke because her boyfriend was no longer able to fully take care of her. Had it not been for medicaid I am not sure how my family would have afforded all of her expenses for the next 3 years. And the service provided was adequate, she was in good hands but I wouldn't say it was exceptional, especially for the price we were still having to pay out-of-pocket. Throughout, my grandmother was never happy there either making it difficult to fully support the staff at the home and their recommendations. She was able to recover enough to live back at her apartment, but now her funds have decreased. Even though my grandma put a good amount aside for retirement during her life, those 3 years cost her most of her savings and I think my family feels that we must be more conservative with her spending.

The CARE system now being proposed does seem to be a step in the right direction. On the other hand, it does seem to be the cycle of life that we must save as much money as possible to end up just spending it all in medical bills down the road. My biggest fear is that as healthcare continues to get more expensive, the money I will save once I start my career and the money out of my paychecks going towards government health programs will not be sufficient enough for even those older than me, and I will then not see a dime of the money I worked to save for my old age. In my opinion, many aspects of long-term healthcare need to be improved and as technology evolves further people will be living longer, and I am not assured right now that there will be enough affordable care for everyone in need.

Post By Patient

Long Term health care seems like a very important aspect of health care that the government often overlooks. To me, it also seems like a huge aspect of long-term health care, is that it provides overwhelming benefits to its patients. This form of health care involves dressing, changing, bathing, and helping out citizens that are not able to do so on their own. It’s also important to realize that this care plan is not simply for senior citizens. If an individual were to be injured or hurt and could not take care of themselves for a long time, long-term health care could definitely be a beneficial option. I think long term health care emphasizes and focuses on the importance of a patients health and comfort, rather then simply a way to treat and dismiss the sick or disabled.

As a patient I can definitely see the two sides of an argument for or against long-term health care. Long-term health care seems to have many pros and cons. Pros to long-term care are obvious. Long-term health care can help provide and pay for a health care that relieves stress and dependence on other family members. It can also assist in choosing nursing homes and providing the quality care a patient deserves. Furthermore, long-term care services can help preserve money and inheritance for family members who would otherwise be paying for their treatment. The cons of long-term care also come in to play when deciding whether a long-term care plan is right for an individual. It seems like long term care plans, have an especially high premium and costs that may be tough for any individual to financially afford. So how does one decide of long-term care should be an important aspect of their health care? Doesn’t general health care provide some long-term coverage for disease or accidents? One question I might have is where long-term health care comes into play for younger individuals that hurt themselves or become ill for a long period of time? Would Medicaid cover this or a long-term care plan? To me it seems like long-term health care should be offered to any individual in the country. Every human being has the right to live and fight for life. It seems like financial burdens should never restrict an individual from being able to live in a place of their choice and at a comfort level satisfactory to the individual patient. I know if I should ever be in a situation where I depend on others for living, I would want the highest quality care possible and I would want to be in a living situation where I was comfortable but not causing a burden for anyone else.

Post by Health Student from another University

I am a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and am majoring in Kinesiology. I think the fitness and health and wellness field actually has a unique connection to the idea of long-term health care. As I am learning in classes, some drastic changes in the fitness field are currently underway. The first lady Mrs. Obama just recently started a bill to begin the fight against sedentary lifestyles and the obesity epidemic. My guess is that some individuals who receive long-term care need it because they did not live healthy enough lifestyles. Being a kinesiology major, the current trends and emphasis in the field are in preventative measures and promoting healthy active lifestyles. I’m not sure if this thought process puts me for or against long-term care. I am against it as a fitness major because it kind of seems like a bailout care plan to individuals who did not live a healthy lifestyles and thus are now suffering the consequences. However, I also believe there are many situations where an individual had/has no control over their health and suffered an unfortunate occurrence that leads them to rely on long term care.

Post by a Health Care Professional

Let me introduce myself; I’m a registered nurse of 28 yrs. My professional experience over the years has consisted of home health care, hospital staff nurse, clinic nurse, nursing home care, pediatric care and currently I’m working as a clinic triage nurse in a large pulmonary department. I’ve been asked to share some of my professional insights regarding long-term health care.

Long-term care is and will continue to be a huge health care delivery issue and a huge social and governmental concern.

Availability of quality long-term health care is and will be facing a shortage of professional/licensed/degreed staff and non-professional staff to met the needs of patients receiving care in an in-patient facility and individuals trying to maintain independence in their own residence. The annual income for professional and non-professional health care providers does not attract a high number of newcomers to the field compared to other higher paying jobs. The type of work done by the health care providers is challenging. Many recipients of long-term care require services on a 24-hour basis. This type of work schedule may mean: rotating shifts, weekends, holidays, and on-call availability.

Social and life-styles have changed over the last century. The average life expectancy is longer, extended families live miles away from each other, and medical advancements have allowed patients to sustain life with decreased or changed quality and function. These changes have impacted the long-term care population. In various locations throughout the nation there are specialty hospitals that take on the higher level of 24-hour care often seen in a hospital intensive care unit, called long-term acute care facilities. The specialty hospital that has taken on the responsibilities of providing care for patients on respiratory ventilators, in dwelling catheters, feeding tubes, and with altered levels of consciousness, to name a few of their needs.

Now, on to the expense of health care. This is paramount in the news media and our government. Affordability of health care impacts issues related to long-term care. Many seniors live independently but rely on numerous medications. Most seniors have Medicare as insurance coverage and often will they refuse or decrease the frequency of an essential medication because of the cost. The senior must decide how to budget a fixed income and pay possibly hundreds of dollars per month on co-pay medications. Annually, Medicare changes it’s medication formulary in order to reduce it’s fees paid for medicines, this translates into patients needing to change medications for a certain condition as often as once a year. I’m not sure if I yet understand the Medicare “donut hole” as it relates to long-term medications.

How do we make changes? Honestly, as a long term professional I’m not optimistic. Why and when did insurance companies gain control of deciding about payment for services? Will the insurance company authorize payment for a diagnostic procedure or medication? I’m aware of a Medicare recipient with an immune deficiency that was receiving monthly infusions of gamma globulin to support her health. She changed her Medicare supplemental policy and learned that she is now responsible for 30% of her monthly infusion fee, which is $7000.00. Her decision has been to discontinue the infusion, she cannot afford $2100.00 per month and with her decision her supplemental policy does not have to pay their 70% of the fee. Taking this one situation I ask why does the medication cost so much? How can nationwide health care continue to escalate it’s fees to the extent of having individuals prioritize their health needs? Does health care delivery in the United States of America need improvement? Absolutely. The priority needs to focus on the care, not the cost of the care.