Perspective on Healthcare
Perspective on Healthcare
HCS/212
February 18, 2013
Corinne McTier
Perspective on Healthcare
Working as a medical assistant has been one of the most rewarding experiences. Patient care should be the top priority for the healthcare industry because without our patients there would be no need for medical employees. Being employed at one of the nation’s top hospitals is bound to change and shape an individual. Working in healthcare affects people in many ways some positive and some negative. As a float medical assistant, trained in more than forty outpatient clinics and eight different electronic medical records, this person gets a unique opportunity to see the inner workings of every clinic and every specialty. This individual is bound to come out of this experience with ideas that could change healthcare for the better.
Before modern medicine it was common practice to do exploratory surgery. Physicians would cut open the body to look at the inside to try to determine what could be the cause of a certain health issue. The human race has come a long way since then and now there are much safer practices. The history of healthcare is full of many triumphs and tragedies but through tragedy healthcare was able to learn and grow.
Health insurance was first offered in the United States during World War II as an attempt to influence workers into working for a particular company. Meanwhile, the rest of the world was working on universal healthcare. Physicians used to only make house calls and were paid on a services render basis. Nurses became a much needed aid in the health care environment and as more advancements in medical care were achieved. With these advancements nurses were allowed more responsibilities that took up more of their time and kept them from assisting the providers. Providers needed to have an assistant to help with clinical flow and that was readily available. Medical assistants were not incorporated into healthcare until 1955. Medical
HCS/212
February 18, 2013
Corinne McTier
Perspective on Healthcare
Working as a medical assistant has been one of the most rewarding experiences. Patient care should be the top priority for the healthcare industry because without our patients there would be no need for medical employees. Being employed at one of the nation’s top hospitals is bound to change and shape an individual. Working in healthcare affects people in many ways some positive and some negative. As a float medical assistant, trained in more than forty outpatient clinics and eight different electronic medical records, this person gets a unique opportunity to see the inner workings of every clinic and every specialty. This individual is bound to come out of this experience with ideas that could change healthcare for the better.
Before modern medicine it was common practice to do exploratory surgery. Physicians would cut open the body to look at the inside to try to determine what could be the cause of a certain health issue. The human race has come a long way since then and now there are much safer practices. The history of healthcare is full of many triumphs and tragedies but through tragedy healthcare was able to learn and grow.
Health insurance was first offered in the United States during World War II as an attempt to influence workers into working for a particular company. Meanwhile, the rest of the world was working on universal healthcare. Physicians used to only make house calls and were paid on a services render basis. Nurses became a much needed aid in the health care environment and as more advancements in medical care were achieved. With these advancements nurses were allowed more responsibilities that took up more of their time and kept them from assisting the providers. Providers needed to have an assistant to help with clinical flow and that was readily available. Medical assistants were not incorporated into healthcare until 1955. Medical
References: American Association of Medical Assistants. (1996-2013). The History of the AAMA. Retrieved from http://www.aama-ntl.org/about/history.aspx Saladin, K. S. (2010). Anatomy & Physiology: The Unity of Form and Function (5th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Historical Highlights. Retrieved from http://www.hhs.gov/about/hshist.html White House. (n.d.). Understanding the Reforms. Retrieved from http://www.whitehouse.gov/healthreform/healthcare-overview#healthcare-menu