Community as a Healthcare Client

As a healthcare client, the community requires a wide range of services of healthcare providers oriented at its specification. They differ in the level of responsibility for the community health and the degree of contact. Healthcare providers must understand the scope of practice and core competencies. This paper aims to observe the community from the perspective of a healthcare client.

A Community-Oriented Approach to Healthcare

Nowadays, a community-oriented primary healthcare setting plays a crucial role in society, and quality care requires meeting patients’ needs. Since the latter usually differ, personal satisfaction within the community is based on individual expectations, attitudes, and perceptions of its members. It is the evidence of the quality of healthcare in a certain community that can be based on gender, sex, race, ethnicity, and so on. Dimensions of the quality of a community-oriented approach of healthcare are expressed in interpersonal relations, technical competence, amenities, and the accessibility of healthcare (Kulbok, Thatcher, Park, & Meszaros, 2012). Thus, interpersonal relations in the community are based on doctor-patient communication, confidentiality, patient’s ability to be informed about possible risks and consequences, and others.

The existing literature reveals that as healthcare clients, communities need health services provided regardless of people’s socio-economic status, geography, cultural and racial differences, and language (Lafortune, Huson, Santi, & Stolee, 2015). For example, before healthcare interventions, doctors try to understand community needs, current practices, and health facilities located in the community area. Admittedly, the accessibility to healthcare services is an important factor of patient satisfaction. According to the recent healthcare act (Obama Care), community members have received more affordable healthcare options (Kulbok et al., 2012). The recent literature suggests that the community requires receiving the increased access to healthcare facilities and workers (Lafortune et al., 2015). Therefore, it is a healthcare client because it needs the same services as each individual patient. For instance, healthcare providers use discussion in their interaction with the community, trying to educate its participants on preventing diseases, keeping nutritional control, and other issues. These actions are similar to those, which are used in the work with individual patients.

The Quality of Care Strategies

In order to succeed in providing healthcare to communities, it is necessary to develop a high-quality care strategy that meets the needs and requirements of each community. As a rule, the latter is formed based on similar features of their members who have a common language, socio-economic status, race, culture, and education. Healthcare providers should keep in mind these specifications and develop appropriate care strategies. According to Lafortune et al. (2015), the community is based on patients who need a greater number of providers, shorter waiting periods in hospitals, punctuality, and so on. Therefore, an effective care strategy can improve the quality of healthcare. In many cases, healthcare workers serve communities at any time, even if a provider is not on duty.

Furthermore, community health workers contribute to the well-being of the community. As a healthcare client, the latter has its specifications. For example, community healthcare providers experience a referral system, involving health promoters and visitors, and additional healthcare information from knowledgeable community members. In many cases, a qualified care strategy encourages healthcare workers to serve patients at any time of the day and night. Moreover, some selfless providers are ready to serve communities even if they are not on duty. The literature reveals that communities need clear instructions about medications, diseases, preventive measures, explanation of treatment, and an opportunity to ask questions (Kulbok et al., 2012). Thus, the quality of the care strategy depends on the professional and personal qualities of healthcare providers that allow communities to receive easy access to healthcare.

Conclusion

As a healthcare client, the community requires a wide range of services provided by healthcare providers, which are based on its specific features. As individual clients, communities need healthcare professionals, who understand the scope of practice and have the core competencies. From the perspective of a healthcare client, they require receive respect to their needs.

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