DHO-Healthscience

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H e a lt h C a r e S y s t e m s 27 2:1 Private Health Care Facilities Today, health care systems include the many agencies, facilities, and personnel involved in the delivery of health care. According to U.S. government statistics, health care is one of the largest and fastest-growing industries in the United States. This industry employs over 17 million workers in more than 200 different health care careers. It attracts people with a wide range of educational backgrounds because it offers multiple career options. By the year 2020, employment is expected to increase by 5.6 million jobs to over 22.1 million workers. Health care spending in the United States is projected to increase from over 2.7 trillion dollars in 2012 to 4.6 trillion dollars in 2020. Many different health care facilities provide services that are a part of the industry called health care (Figure 2-1). Most private health care facilities require a fee for services. In some cases, grants and contributions help provide financial support for these facilities. A basic description of the various facilities will help provide an understanding of the many different types of services included under the umbrella of the health care industry. Hospitals Hospitals are one of the major types of health care facilities. They vary in size and types of service provided. Some hospitals are small and serve the basic needs of a community; others are large, complex centers offering a wide range of services including diagnosis, treatment, education, and research. Hospitals are also classified as private or proprietary (operated for profit), religious, nonprofit or voluntary, and government, depending on the sources of income received by the hospital. There are many different types of hospitals. Some of the more common ones include: • General hospitals: treat a wide range of conditions and age groups; usually provide diagnostic, medical, surgical, and emergency care services • Specialty hospitals: provide care for special conditions or age groups; examples include burn hospitals, oncology (cancer) hospitals, pediatric (or children's) hospitals, psychiatric hospitals (dealing with mental diseases and disorders), orthopedic hospitals (dealing with bone, joint, or muscle disease), and rehabilitative hospitals (offering services such as physical and occupational therapy) • Government hospitals: operated by federal, state, and local government agencies; include the many facilities Figure 2-1   Different health care facilities. Top image © iStockphoto/ Steve Shepard, Middle Image © iStockphoto/Catherine Yeulet, and Bottom Image © iStockphoto/Paul Hill

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