Health Care in the USA.

Health Care in the USA.

In the USA there are three levels of organizationnof medical service: the level of the family doctor, the medical institution or hospital and the United States Public Health Service.

The average American has a doctor of his own, whom he calls his “family doctor”. This doctor gives the patient regular examinations and inoculations. In case professional care is needed, the family doctor arranges for the patient to see a specialist or to go to the hospital. The family doctor receives pay directly from the patient. Most physicians have private practices. They make use of the hospital`s facilities whenever necessary. A family doctor either has his own private office or works with several other doctors in a so-called group practice.

But some Americans with low income have no family doctor. They come directly to the hospitals for all their medical needs. The hospital provides health care to the sick and injured. There are government-financed and private hospitals. The patients are admitted to hospitals or clinics staffed by consulting physicians, residents, interns and highly skilled nurses. Nurses and patients are in close contact throughout the patients` stay in the hospital. Social services are available to the patients and families regarding personal, emotional, and financial problems that may arise from continued illness or disabilities.

Most hospitals have at least the following major departments or units: surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, pediatrics and general medicine. They may also have trauma and intensive care units, neurosurgical and renal care units, and psychiatric unit. The Emergency Room (unit) is a very special area in the hospital. The emergency patients receive immediate attention.

The cost of medical care in the USA is high. Two thirds of the population have private health insurance. Some people have health insurance, life insurance (financial assistance for relatives in case of death), disability insurance and retirement benefits at their place of employment. The great cost of medical care in the country and the great number of people who could not pay for it forced the federal government to develop two health insurance programs – Medicaid and Medicare. Medicaid is a federal program providing free medical care for low-income people, the aged, the blind and for dependent children. Medicare is a federal program providing free medical care for aged Americans over 65, for those who in the past had the greatest medical expenses.

The chief scientific problems facing American medicine are the same as those facing Russian medicine, they are heart disease and cancer. The chief causes of suffering and death today are cancer and cardiovascular diseases, including hypertension, stroke and atherosclerosis. Also much medical research is done on illnesses of aging, disabilities caused by arthritis, mental illness, drug addiction, and genetic problems.

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