A nurse is interviewing a client who recently visited the emergency department for an upper respiratory infection. The client states that the "hospital bill is more than my other hospital bill from a 2-day operation 1 year ago". Which is the statement the nurse uses in teaching the client about health care economics?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

With health insurance companies and managed care, different prices are often paid for the same service, and consumers have little information as to the costs. Health care purchases are not easily understood. Health care is an "opaque market" that keeps consumers in the dark about actual costs of services and medications due to confidential negotiations, discounts, and rebates. Nurses need to teach clients about this and focus on health promotion to reduce unnecessary hospitalizations. The emergency department care is not more expensive than hospital floor care. A different number of medications is not the sole contributor to the cost but may be one of the factors that is negotiated. Asking a question is not appropriate when informing a client about the supply and demand of health care economics.

A Nurse Is Interviewing a Client Who Recently Visited the Emergency