providing information on medical institutions

• Abstract
• Purpose of health policy or idea
• Characteristics of this policy
• Political and economic background
• Purpose and process analysis
• Expected outcome
• References

Abstract

This new initiative is to provide, via the Internet, information such as features of each medical institution, as a part of services provided by health insurers to insurees. In Japan, it is left to free choice of patients to decide on what hospital they visit or stay in, but they had very few information about medical institutions in making the choice in the past. This new initiative is planned to solve this problem as a part of services provided by health insurers.

Purpose of health policy or idea

This new initiative is to provide, via the Internet, information such as features of each medical institution, as a part of services provided by health insurers to insurees. In Japan, it is left to free choice of patients to decide on what hospital they visit or stay in, but in the past they had little information about medical institutions to facilitate that choice. This new initiative is planned to solve to fill this gap.

Main points

Main objectives

to provide, via the Internet, information such as features of each medical institution as a part of services provided by health insurers to insurees

Type of incentives

non-financial : as a part of services provided by insurers

Groups affected

hospitals, patients

Innovationsgrad	traditionell		innovativ
Kontroversität	unumstritten		kontrovers
Strukturelle Wirkung	marginal		fundamental
Medienpräsenz	sehr gering		sehr hoch
Übertragbarkeit	sehr systemabhängig		systemneutral

This initiative is indispensable for promoting effective application of the "free access" principle that is one of the main features in Japan's health care system. Items to be disclosed are at present confined to the assessment of structural information about health care institutions only, but they are expected to be expanded to items such as the assessment of actual medical practice.   

Political and economic background

Purpose and process analysis

Current Process Stages

	Idee	Pilotprojekt	Strategiepapier	Gesetzgebung	Umsetzung	Evaluation	Veränderung/Richtungswechsel
Implemented in this survey?

Approach of idea

The approach of the idea is described as:
new:

Expected outcome

The purpose of this initiative was to facilitate patients choice on medical institutions they visit or stay in. Its impact has not been evaluated yet.

Impact of this policy

Qualität	kaum Einfluss		starker Einfluss
Gerechtigkeit	System weniger gerecht		System gerechter
Kosteneffizienz	sehr gering		sehr hoch

So far, health insurers in Japan, for themselves, have not provided information useful to patients. This initiative signifies to patients, providers and governments that autonomy of health insurers in Japan is becoming increasingly enhanced. Actual benefits from this initiative will be evident in the near future, but the fact that stakeholders in the health care system have become aware that the role of insurers will change is even more significant.

References

Sources of Information

Internet homepage of the National Federation of Health Insurance Societies (only in Japanese) : http://www.kenporen.com/

Author/s and/or contributors to this survey

Tetsuya Aman, Nobuyuki Izumida

Empfohlene Zitierweise für diesen Online-Artikel:

Tetsuya Aman, Nobuyuki Izumida. "providing information on medical institutions". Health Policy Monitor, June 2004. Available at http://www.hpm.org/survey/jp/c3/3