Get help, or pay!

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Caring for families is a privilege. Lutheran Hospital of Fort Wayne, Indiana, is proud to be called upon, generation after generation, to care for moms, dads, kids and neighbors. The physicians, nurses, therapists and staff of the Lutheran Health Network have dedicated themselves to helping others. That抯 what I call selfless sacrifice towards saving human life. The first hospital in Fort Wayne to open was St. Joseph Hospital in 1869. The next one was Lutheran Hospital. In spring of 2001, Dupont Hospital was created. All these hospitals combine into Lutheran Health Network. St. Joseph and Lutheran Hospitals are non-profit organizations, whereas Dupont is a for-profit hospital (Medical). The advantages of the non-profit hospital system, such as Lutheran Hospital, overweigh the possible disadvantages of such system. Hygiene, services, personnel, staff culture, outpatient clinic, emergency room, and working atmosphere are all things that make the Lutheran Hospital 搮 very proud of the men and women who make up the Lutheran Health Network (Quality).� All these factors will be discussed below.

牋牋牋牋牋� One of such factors is hygiene, level of which is good both in non-profit and for-profit settings. Hygiene consists of simple cleaning techniques, like bleaching the floor, changing beds often, using plastic containers. It is reasonable that in both systems there are qualitative hygiene techniques, for after all with all that wonderful modern technology. The least that all modern hospitals can do is to keep the hygiene at an appropriate level. The importance of hygiene follows from the following example, if you lie in a bed in the hospital, you would prefer it to be a pleasant experience among other hospital unpleasant procedures (Forte).

牋牋牋牋牋� There are pleasant things in a hospital, such as services, which in non-profit settings, such as Lutheran Hospital, are rendered under very warm atmosphere. The impression is such that people are doing their job awarding their own goodwill, and pleasure in helping patients, rather than constantly thinking about how to get more money out of their jobs. In for-profit setting the impression is that you are in a police station, or even in a police state. Everyone is watched, and everything is relayed via whistleblowers to the administration, everything is forced and enforced, thus the staff is doing everything because of fear being punished, not because of their high motivation to help patients. The bureaucracy, the enforcement and watch day system are much stranger in for-profit hospitals. Possibly, utilization of resources is somewhat better in the for-profit system, but at the price of strict control, enforcement system, and tense unpleasant working environment (Forte). Would you prefer to be patient of the medical staff thinking how to get money on their job, or thinking how to help you out?

牋牋牋牋牋� And don抰 get me wrong, for the personnel are well trained in both systems (Forte). The training of personnel occurs in the same medical schools, universities and colleges. Therefore, we can expect the same quality of personnel in both hospital systems, both the non-profit and the for-profit. If your college classmate from medical school goes to a for-profit hospital and you are going into a non-profit hospital, it does not make you or him a lesser doctor by any means.

牋牋牋牋牋� Unlike, possibly, your classmates�, if you are a doctor, or nurse, or other member of the hospital, hospital environment, in Lutheran Hospital staff culture leaves us with a feeling of more personal family atmosphere. If a mistake is made, and the attention is drawn to it, the staff just fixes it privately. Meanwhile in for-profit hospital the staff is panicking, fearing being written up (Forte). There must be care and compassion in doctors and nurses, not only toward the patient, but also toward each other. They must show understanding and respect, not only to the patient, but also to their colleagues. Unfortunately, a for-profit system kills that care, compassion, understanding and respect. The workplace should be a workable place, if you want the doctors to be calm and friendly to you, as a patient.

牋牋牋牋牋� Speaking of the patient, the outpatient clinic is usually well organized in both, in non-profit and for-profit organizations, though there is some waste of resources because of competition. Despite the fact that total number of patients and visits has not changed much during recent years, but the competition between the two systems forces them to build medical centers and hospital branches in new location in an attempt to recruit more patients living nearby. If one system opens a center, the competition immediately builds a similar center, in the long run wasting taxpayers money since they still serve basically the same population, but at higher cost (Forte). If there was no difference between the two systems, there would not be a competition between them, therefore all systems should be equivalent, and it seems that the non-profit approach is more effective as a healthcare system.

牋牋牋牋牋� Effectiveness has to do with such things as emergency rooms, which as always are busy, messy and involve a great deal of waiting for assistance, unless it is a true emergency, which is a tiny fraction of emergency patients. In both systems it is working about right, as it is very difficult to optimize completely (Forte). We can expect a little difference in the emergency room. However, it would be logical to expect lines in emergency room in a for-profit hospital system to be longer, since they would attempt to optimize financial, but not medical, efficiency. Where would you want to go then to the non-profit system, or to the for-profit?

牋牋牋牋牋� Finally, atmosphere in the Lutheran Hospital is more free and liberal, than in a for-profit hospital, for quality of patient care is about the same but the difference is mainly in work environment, staff cooperation, supervision strictness, and management involvement in the staff business versus more liberal self-regulation. Event Internet access is extremely restricted in the police sate of for-profit system, such as Parkview. Although, physicians formally are allowed to use PC for personnel needs too, but majority of sites are locked (Forte). There aren抰 many teens using those PC抯, why isn抰 the allowed to view and access websites? Is our life always going to be pampered?

牋牋牋牋牋� There are many advantages of non-profit hospital system which are more valuable, than the disadvantages. Hygiene level is good both in non-profit and for-profit settings. As with the services, in non-profit settings, such as Lutheran Hospital, all services are rendered under very warm atmosphere. The personnel are well trained in both systems. In Lutheran Hospital staff culture leaves us with a feeling of more personal family atmosphere. Outpatient clinic is usually well organized in both, in non-profit and for-profit organizations, though there is some waste of resources because of competition. Emergency rooms, as always are busy, messy and involve a great deal of waiting for assistance, unless it is a true emergency, which is a tiny fraction of emergency patients. Atmosphere in the Lutheran Hospital is more free and liberal, than in a for-profit hospital, for quality of patient care is about the same but the difference is mainly in work environment, staff cooperation, supervision strictness, and management involvement in the staff business versus more liberal self-regulation. The final call is up to you, to be dragged into a hospital, where people constantly think about money, or to walk freely into a hospital, where the most important goal of every staff member is to help you! The choice is yours.

WORKS CITED

Quality of life. Lutheran Health Network.

<http://www.lutheranhealthnetwork.com/employment/default.htm>

Medical Care. Lutheran Health Network.

<http://www.lutheranhealthnetwork.com/medicalcare/default.htm>

Forte, Robert. Personal Interview. 2 June 2002.