The health-care economy is filled with unusual and even unique economic relationships. One of the least understood involves the peculiar roles of producer or "provider" and purchaser or "consumer" in the typical doctor-patient relationship. In most sectors of the economy, it is the seller who attempts to attract a potential buyer with various appealing factors of price, quality, and use, and it is the buyer who makes the decision. Such condition, however, is not common in most of the health-care industry. In the health-care industry, the doctor-patient relationship is the mirror image of the ordinary relationship between producer and consumer. Once an individual has chosen to see a physician -- and even then there may be no real choice -- it is the physician who usually makes all significant purchasing decisions: whether the patient should return "next Wednesday", whether X-rays are needed, whether drugs should be prescribed, etc. It is rare that a patient will challenge such professional decisions or raise in advance questions about price, especially when the disease is regarded as serious. This is particularly significant in relation to hospital care. The physician must certify the need for hospitalization, determine what procedures will be performed, and announce when the patient may be discharged. The patient may be consulted about some of the decisions, but in general it is the doctor's judgments that are final. Little wonder then that in the eye of the hospital it is the physician who is the real "consumer". As a consequence, the medical staff represents the "power center" in hospital policy and decision-making, not the administration. Although usually there are in this situation four identifiable participants-- the physician, the hospital, the patient, and the payer (generally an insurance carrier or government)-- the physician makes the essential decisions for all of them. The hospital becomes an extension of the physician; the payer generally meets most of the bills generated by the... It can be inferred that doctors are able to determine hospital policies because _ . A) most of patient's bills are paid by his health insurance B) it is doctors who generate income for the hospital C) some patients might refuse to take their physician's advice D) a doctor is ultimately responsible for a patient's health
B
(Question)
My wife and I have always been friendly with the clerks at the local store. I don't think many people appreciate what a difficult job these clerks have. They work for a little money and I often wonder how they make ends meet. One of the clerks, Charlie, was always wearing his glasses but he didn't one day. I asked him about it and he said they'd been out of order and that he couldn't afford a new pair. His family needed money. It was clear that he was having a difficult time. We wanted to help him, so we turned to our own eye doctor for help with a plan. We had his secretary contact him, asking him to come in for an eye exam for free. We told the doctor to let him order whatever glasses he wanted and that we would pay for them. Although Charlie questioned what was going on, the doctor just told him that someone had offered the money for his new glasses. When we went in to pay the bill, the doctor told us he was touched by our idea so that he _ the exam fee and only charged us for half the price of the glasses! It was so wonderful to see Charlie in his new glasses and he enjoyed telling all the regular customers how the gift came about. I'm sure that upon hearing his story, ideas of kindness may have come in the minds of many people. From the passage, we can infer that _ . A) Charlie was a young man with skills B) Charlie knew who paid the money for the new glasses C) Charlie completely accepted the money for the new glasses D) Charlie couldn't support his family with enough money
(Answer)
D
Ques: Some people say that the best way to reduce the size of your waist is to do stomach exercise. Many people believe that when specific muscles are exercised, the fatty tissues in the immediate area are burned up. The truth is that exercise burns fat from all over the body and not from one specific area. Of course, if you reduce the fat throughout your body, you will certainly see results around your waist too. Some people believe that you need to exercise twice a week in order to keep a sufficient level of physical fitness. However, studies directed by American scientists show that unexercised muscles lose their strength very quickly. Within 48 to 72 hours, you must use the muscles again to reestablish the good physical effects. And what does that mean to you? American scientists concluded that while daily exercise is most helpful, exercising every other day or three days a week will keep a sufficient level of physical fitness. Is it true that you burn more calories running one mile than walking the same distance? The answer is no. The truth is that you use the same amount of energy whether you walk or run the mile, since in both cases you are moving the same weight the same distance. The speed does not matter. Of course, if you run rather than walk for 30 minutes, you will cover more distance, and therefore burn more calories. If your breathing doesn't return to normal within 5 minutes after you finish exercising, you have exercised too much. Five minutes or so after exercising, your breathing should be normal, your heart shouldn't be beating loudly, and you shouldn't be tired. This passage tells us that _ . A) it is better to do more running than walking B) the more exercise you do, the healthier you will be C) the unexercised muscles must be used again within 48 to 72 hours D) in order to lose weight, you have to run fast
Ans: C
Ques: How we look and how we appear to others probably worries us more when we are in our teens or early twenties than at any other time in our life. Few of us are content to accept ourselves as we are, and few are brave enough to ignore the trends of fashion. Most fashion magazines or TV advertisements try to persuade us that we should dress in a certain way or behave in a certain manner. If we do, they tell us, we will be able to meet new people with confidence and deal with every situation confidently and without embarrassment. Changing fashion, of course, does not apply just to dress. A barber today does not cut a boy's hair in the same way as he used to, and girls do not make up in the same way as their mothers and grandmothers did. The advertisers show us the latest fashionable styles and we are constantly under pressure to follow the fashion in case our friends think we are odd or dull. What causes fashions to change? Sometimes convenience or practical necessity or just the fancy of an influential person can establish a fashion. Take hats for example. In cold climates, early buildings were cold inside, so people wore hats indoors as well as outside. In recent times, the late President Kennedy caused a depression in the American hat industry by not wearing hats, and more American men followed his example. There is also a cyclical pattern in fashion. In the 1920s in Europe and America, short skirts became fashionable. After World War II, they dropped to ankle length. Then they got shorter and shorter until the miniskirt was in fashion. After a few more years, skirts became longer again. Today, society is much freer and easier than it used to be. It is no longer necessary to dress like everyone else. Within reason, you can dress as you like or do your hair the way you like instead of the way you should because it is the fashion. The popularity of jeans and the "untidy" look seems to be a reaction against the increasingly expensive fashion of the top fashion houses. At the same time, appearance is still... Which of the following is True according to the passage? A) President Kennedy once caused a disaster in the American hat industry B) Before the second World War , skirts had dropped shorter to ankle length. C) You can't dress however you like or do your hair the way you like today. D) The "untidy" jeans are a reaction against the increasingly expensive fashion.
Ans:
A