President Obama's administration  is trying to revamp our American health care  system  to be more efficient.  His plan is to improve patient care as well as lower the skyrocketing costs of medical care. Is that a reality that we can experience here in the United States? How can the president reduce spending costs for American patients and still assure them of receiving quality care?  The United States has a very high infant mortality rate as well as high preventable death rate as compared to other Western countries. Why is one of the most powerful and advanced countries in the world experiencing such a poor report on patient care and mortality?

The Obama's administration is attempting to change this horrible health care picture we have before us. There are three model health care programs in this country that the president could use throughout the rest of the country. They are Ginsburg Health Center in  Pennsylvania, the Cleveland Clinic and the Mayo Clinic. The centers have created an environment in which the patient has access to most of their medical data, the severely ill patients have full access to their physicians, and the doctors include the patients in decisions regarding their health. The programs have a proactive approach to patient care and management of wellness. In the long run, the patient spends less time in surgery or the emergency room.

The patients  receive a guarantee that their surgery will be a success. If for some reason complications arise, the patient may  require a second surgery for the same health problem.
The patient will not have to pay for that corrective surgery.  That is part of the guarantee promise of the hospital. Not charging for the second or corrective surgery is a great reduction in patient care and costs. Doctors are rewarded by the hospital for successfully completed surgeries. That means they do  not need to perform corrective surgery from the original surgery they performed on the patient. Doctors receive 50 percent of the savings for not having to repeat the surgery.  Statistics show that 18 percent of medicare patients require a second surgery for the same illness. The second surgery is a second bill they must find money to pay for. This savings has a ripple affect across the medical world and meets the President's goal to reduce health care costs.

There is another positive aspect of the three clinics mentioned above. The patient's electronic records are available throughout the hospital system the patient is associated with. That means if a patient goes to an appointment outside their town and to one of the associated hospitals, the patient only needs to give the identification number to the attending physician.  The physician keys the patient number into the computer. All the information on the patient is instantly made available to the doctor at that point. Also any medications or recommendations made by the doctor will be entered into the patient's records on the spot. This will reduce the prescription of medicines not safe for the patient and keep the patient records current at all times.

The three clinics are a reality in the Untied States and they are successful. They are not proto-types. They are the foundations which the Obama administration may consider when revamping the American health system. The patient, the hospital and the doctors all find themselves in a win-win position.