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Introduction

In the United States, many people, including those in the upper echelons of the US healthcare system, have the impression that the very best healthcare is in the United States. We do not need, they say, to look at what is happening in terms of best practices and quality indicators in other countries around the world.

Some say that it would be comparing Trabis with Beemers since countries having universal health care have a goal of preventive care and the health care systems are rewarded for keeping people healthy and out of hospitals and the US does not have universal health care and hospitals in the US have a goal of profitability and are rewarded based on increased usage by paying patients.

The US healthcare system is in many ways comparable to healthcare systems in other countries. The American healthcare system is actually a hybrid of universal health care for the elderly (Medicare), healthcare for the poor and children (Medicaid), commercial insurance, and guaranteed access for all to emergency departments. Because there is a provision in federal law for hospital emergency departments to provide care to stabilize anyone who comes in the door, including those who have no ability to pay, many in the US believe that this provision for emergency department care does assure healthcare for everyone in the US. Some say this constitutes universal health care.

Healthcare services in the US are provided for those with military experience (military service and Veteran's Administration hospitals), public local or state government hospitals, private investor owned hospitals, and non-government not-for-profit hospitals (includes church-related hospitals and others).

In many countries outside of the US, while there is universal health coverage, there is a system of public and private hospitals and there is an option, in many countries, for private health insurance as well as the state national health insurance coverage. While the US has a multi-tier health system, so do many countries around the world.

Contributors to this web site are invited to 1) describe health systems by country or federation (the European Union, the United States, and others) and within countries, so that readers can see differences and similarities, and 2) provide examples of best practices, effective organizational structures, and measurable quality indicators. These best practices and indicators are not limited to those in clinical services, but also in support services such as marketing, public relations, planning and administration.

Anyone can contribute to the building and modification on this topic, governed by the same rules as any wiki such as Wikipedia.

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