Ambulatory Health Care Services

Ambulatory Health Care Services

Brief Excerpt from Industry Overview Chapter:

Companies in this industry, which include physicians, dentists, outpatient care centers, and imaging and diagnostic facilities, provide health care services to ambulatory patients. Major companies include Apria Healthcare, DaVita, and LabCorp (all based in the US), as well as Bayshore HealthCare (Canada), Fresenius (Germany), and Sonic Healthcare (Australia).

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Pressure on the health care industry to drive down costs is pushing more care into lower-cost ambulatory settings and away from hospitals and nursing homes. Payments are increasingly based on whether providers meet quality standards. Demand for health care services is driven by demographics and advances in medical care and technology. The profitability of individual companies depends on efficiency, reputation, and expertise.

PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Major services of ambulatory health care companies include patient care (about 65% of industry revenue), dental non-surgical intervention (about 5%), and medical diagnostic testing (about 5%). Other sources of revenue include medical and diagnostic laboratories, blood banks, rehabilitation therapy, ambulance services, and offices of other health practitioners such as chiropractors, optometrists, and mental health practitioners. Health care in the US is led by for-profit entities, an exception to the global norm of nationalized medicine.