An introduction to a new journal for Healthcare Systems Engineering

摘要

Healthcare delivery in the U.S. and worldwide has been plagued with accelerating growth in expenditures coupled with increasing concerns about the quality of the services and patient safety. According to the National Health Expenditure Data Projections, healthcare expenditures will reach a total of $3.30 trillion by 2013 and account for 18% of GDP (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2009).The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Institute of Medicine (IOM) considered the current state of the healthcare system in the U.S. and called for a re-engineering of the healthcare system to improve patient safety, quality outcomes, and cost. This was published in the report: Building a Better Delivery System: A New Engineering/Health Care Partnership by the National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine (2005).