ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the impact of capitalism on the U.S. health care system related to technology and specialization. Over the past 150 years, the clinical benefits of countless new technologies to improve diagnosis and treatment options, led to the creation of numerous provider specialty roles, but resulted in ever-increasing costs for taxpayers. Furthermore, the opportunity for over-testing, based on the availability of various technologies and the specialists who use them, coupled with defensive medicine practices to minimize malpractice litigation risks, and/or the need to shorten emergency department length of stay times, all raise ethical issues for providers, institutions, and consumers. However, in addition to the diagnostic/treatment technological advancements, there are the unintended pitfalls with electronic medical records (EMRs) related to consumer–provider communication, clinical information sharing, and providers’ stress levels. For many providers, EMRs are perceived as more financially centered, instead of clinically focused, user friendly communication tools.
