Health Services Planning

Book Description When Health Services Planning was originally published in 1999, it was intended to fill a void that existed in the literature on the planning of health services. Its publication was also a response to developments in the US society in general and healthcare in particular that created an urgent need for the pursuit of at least some level of health planning. The 1990s witnessed continued fragmentation of the public healthcare system and the introduction of new challenges such as the reemergence of long-dormant communicable diseases. The growing number of uninsured individuals threatened to severely damage our ability to provide care. The closure of numerous hospitals and a large number of bankruptcies among healthcare organizations provided further evidence of the lack of planning for future exigencies.
Since that time, the situation in the United States has further deteriorated in many ways, making the need for health planning even more urgent. Serious shortcomings in the public health arena have been identified, and “safety net” hospitals have increasingly lost their ability to handle the overwhelming demand for their services. The Medicaid program is facing serious challenges, and the ability of Medicare to sustain itself for the long run has been questioned. Add to this the emergence of various communicable diseases that have long been thought eradicated, and the need for a systematic approach to health planning challenges is obvious.

Content

1. Introduction to Health Services Planning
2. An Overview of Health Planning
3. The Social and Health Systems Context for Health Services Planning
4. The Changing Environment for Health Planning
5. Health Services Demand and Utilization
6. The Planning Process
7. The New Community Assessment Process
8. The Planning Audit
10. Marketing Planning
11. Business Planning
12. Research Methods for Health Services Planning
13. Information Sources and Data Management
14. The Future of Health Services Planning