ARAMARK Healthcare Fellow, Deborah Daniel, a Canadian, leads discussion with Irish healthcare CEOs at the Guinness Storehouse facility in Dublin.
We started the ARAMARK Healthcare Fellowship in 2009 and boy have we seen some great success to date! Our fellows come from some of the finest CAHME-accredited graduate programs in North America. Upon completion of the program, nearly all of our fellows have been placed in top-notch healthcare facilities. It’s great to see and know that the core facets of the program which include traditional hospital project work, academic based translational research, and experiential learning really provide the foundation for a rewarding career in the healthcare industry. Earlier this month our current class of ARAMARK Healthcare Fellows took a trip to Ireland to encounter firsthand what their health care system. From what I hear, we may be offering the fellowship in the Emerald Isle in 2013.
I’ve asked our fellows to be guest bloggers, to give you their impressions. Today’s posting is by Deborah Daniel, an MHA graduate from the University of Toronto, who is serving as the ARAMARK Healthcare fellow at Vancouver Coastal Health, British Columbia, Canada.Health Care in Ireland
By Guest Blogger: Deb Daniel, ARAMARK Healthcare Fellow
As a Canadian in Health Care Administration, post-Master Fellowships are not common. I am very lucky to have been given the opportunity to do a Fellowship with ARAMARK in a Canadian System. Part of my experience included a trip to Ireland to experience not only a different health care system but also to see how ARAMARK helps create positive experiences for their clients in different lines of business such as food services at universities and tourist destinations including the Guinness Brewery. Part of our trip included visiting different health care facilities and hospitals as well as learning the structure and function of the system and how ARAMARK exists within this context.
Ireland has a socialized health care system where all citizens have access to specific medical services – such as hospital visits. There are both private and public run hospitals within Ireland – all citizens have access to the public hospitals, but each person or family has to pay out-of-pocket for access private hospitals either through purchased private insurance or personal expense. What I found interesting was the initial “fee” that had to be paid whether you sought care at a public or private facility – in contrast to Canada were accessing public hospitals is at a zero cost.
The private hospitals we visited were beautiful – most were very new and extremely clean. I unfortunately had to visit a hospital due to a personal medical issue and chose a private facility as I was told I would get care quicker because I had private insurance. And right they were! I was seen quite quickly at a cost of $110 Euros. In contrast, if I attended a public facility, I would have had to pay $100 Euros and my wait times would have been much longer. However, at the public facility my other tests and services would be covered at no charge, but on the other hand I would have had to pay at the private hospital.
I can see why people would prefer the private hospital, and found it interesting to speak to locals who say that for major trauma and illness they would rather attend the public facility. From the people we spoke to, they said the care in either type of delivery is excellent; however, private facilities are good for more minor incidents such as the one I was having.
Being able to experience the health care system first hand and not just hear about it from locals and affiliates was interesting – I saw, and I believed.
