Hospitalization Basics
What are the different types of hospitals in the US?
How does a 'general hospital' compare to a 'teaching hospital'?
A general hospital deals with most of the services that people need for their medical care and/or their surgical care. Some general hospitals many have obstetrical departments as opposed to teaching hospitals, which are usually more complex. Sometimes we call teaching hospitals tertiary care hospitals, which means that they provide higher level services, such as cardiac surgery and transplant services. There is a very interesting trend in hospitals and that is things that start out in tertiary care hospitals, like cardiac surgery, become more and more commonplace and more and more routine. For example, cardiac surgery is now done on a very regular basis in community hospitals. Obstetrical services are classically done in community hospitals. Women who have complex medical conditions or who have real complications may very well go to a tertiary care hospital where there is a specialty in obstetrics, where the university professors in medicine and residents can provide an additional level of care to that which is provided by their local physicians.
What is a 'specialty hospital'?
Specialty hospitals are obvious: they deal with their specialties. We have hospitals today that just deal with orthopedic issues. We have hospitals that deal just with women and children issues. We have hospitals that deal just with cardiac surgery and obviously we have hospital that deal just with psychiatric care. That's because of the nature of the specialty that requires this.
What is a 'community hospital'?
A community hospital means just what it says: it's a hospital located in a community. It's also a synonym for general hospital, and again, it provides the majority of care and services that most people need from hospitals.
What is the difference between a 'non-profit' and a 'for-profit' hospital?
A non-profit hospital is really the way all hospitals in the United States started: as charitable institutions, often by religious orders or by cities. Non-profit hospitals were designed not to make money; they were designed and founded to provide care to the citizens of that community. Today we also have for-profit hospitals, and this really came about when the need for capital (money) to build hospitals, to buy new equipment as the technology was changing, overwhelmed certain communities. Companies - from our capitalistic society - produced the capital that built hospitals. The owners of those hospitals are investors, like the owners of any stock corporation, whether it's Coca-Cola or General Motors or whatever, and they expect a return on their investment. At a very practical level, whether a hospital is a for-profit hospital or non-profit hospital, we're all governed by the same standards of care. We all provide the same standards of care; we're organized a little bit differently, but from the patient's perspective, there should be no difference in the level of care between a community hospital and a for-profit hospital.
What is a 'state' or 'federally-funded' hospital?
Today, there aren't many state or federally owned hospitals, although there are some, such as in Los Angeles County, Harbor USC or UCLA are hospitals owned by the county of Los Angeles. Most states and the federal government today act as insurers, and pay hospitals through the Medicare program, through the Medical program, Champis, which is a program for retired military. These are insurance vehicles through which states and governments provide funds to hospitals.
What does it mean to be 'admitted' to a hospital?
To be admitted to a hospital means that a person is going to be formally enrolled and registered as a patient in the hospital, be cared for under the supervision of a physician, cared for by nurses and support staff, to deal with whatever their diagnostic or therapeutic needs really are.
Why would I need to be admitted to a hospital?
That's really a decision made by a physician. You need to be admitted to a hospital when your care needs are such that they cannot be dealt with in the emergency room, can't be dealt with in an outpatient facility, where you need the supervision of hospital-trained professionals and physicians 24-hours a day.
What does it mean to be 'discharged' from a hospital?
Discharged means that your doctors made the decision that you're ready to leave the hospital. You might be discharged to home, depending on your situation. You might be discharged to another health care facility for additional recuperation, and it really depends on your needs and your clinical condition.
What are my rights as a patient in a hospital?
As a patient in a hospital, you have a whole series of rights that start with privacy and personal dignity. You have the right to express your personal values, beliefs and preferences for your healthcare, the right to be told of any significant events that happened during your stay, the right to know the identity of the people involved in your care. You surely have the right to know when students, residents or other trainees are going to be involved in your hospital care or treatment. You have the right to be cared for in a clean and a save environment, free from abuse or neglect. You have the right to participate fully in the decision making regarding any care or treatment that your physicians are anticipating for you. You have the right to be informed of the benefits and risks of each hospital treatment and whether the treatment is experimental or not. You have the right to receive information about charges for which you will be billed and held responsible. Most importantly, you have the right to receive medical care and services that are not dependent on your ability to pay, but rather on your need.
