Reference no: EM13736978
I have to respond to the following statements. Please provide 100-150 words to each statement with a reference to each if applicable.
1- Strategic Management
Strategic management is critical for the success of an organization. The survival of a health care organization is determined by how well the organization is able to adapt to change. "Successful health care organizations have leaders who understand the nature and implications of external change, the ability to develop effective strategies that account for change, and the will as well as the ability to actively manage the momentum of the organization" (Swayne, Duncan, and Ginter, 2008, p.6). Health care leaders must employ strategies to cope with the dynamics of the industry. Health care laws and regulations are external factors that affect the operations of an organization. Such policies aid with the development of an entity's infrastructure. Therefore, leaders must think and prepare for the future demands of the institution. For example, the drive of electronic medical records through the meaningful use program aimed to encourage the adoption of EHRs. Such a change is embraced in the industry due to the advances in technology and is one that a leader must strategically consider to remain competitive, comply with regulations, and ultimately satisfy customers. The importance of strategic management today is to aid an entity's response to change. "Strategic management helps an individual organization to respond to state and federal policy and planning efforts" (Swayne, Duncan, and Ginter, 2008, p.9).
2- Strategic Management in Healthcare
The purpose of strategic management is to plan performance measurements by making managerial decisions and actions (Hunger and Wheelen, 2011). Most businesses were already well adapted to this concept before healthcare institutions. Health care institutions saw this as an opportunity to improve and better develop their own managerial duties. As the health care industry became complex, new concepts were adapted to keep the industry running in an efficient manner. Most health care institutions changed from not-for-profit to for-profit and new things like health insurance, payment systems, healthcare information and technology, and a focus on patient satisfaction came into focus. The role of strategic management in a health care institution is to provide structure and a way to find a stable yet flexible pathway to the goals of the institution. The goals would be a part of the mission and vision of the any place of business, including health care institutions.
This role is very important in today's health care environment especially now that new health care laws and ideals have been put into place. The Affordable Care Act, the new HIPAA provision, redistribution of healthcare professional duties and pay, and patient-centered healthcare are just a few of the currently new concepts that have either been put into action or are being debated. Even with these laws and ideals, institutions have to find a way to accommodate them all the while still meeting their own goals. Strategic management would help to put these concepts into the plans each institution has established. Again, strategic management's role is to help provide structure to keep the business running. The healthcare industry is always changing. In this fast pacing industry plans need to be made to guide businesses to success.
3- Strategic Management
These days with the advances in technology and informatics applied to the health care, the way to perceive the medical practice has been changed. With the advent of the electronic health record and its application as a tool to support the patient treatment, it is possible to measure the quality of health care service provided to the patient. This innovation is used by the federal, local, and private accrediting and regulatory agencies, to enforce health laws, and quality requirements, so the scenario becomes more complex for the health care institutions. That complexity requires the participation of the health care strategic management that will organize the patient's care and facilitating his access to health care, patient's satisfaction, the quality of the organization's outcomes, allocation of resources, employee's satisfaction, organization's social responsibly, to watch for competitors and the organization's compliance with regulatory agencies, and discerning consumers, all toward to enhance the quality of the of the ongoing health care service delivery. The health care is a dynamic industry that requires a continuous quality improvement to meet the continuous consumer's changing needs, and the continuous changes in rules or quality requirements by the federal, local, and private regulatory agencies. The strategic management plays a fundamental role in planning, organizing, implementing, and evaluating the outcomes of the health care organization, establishing what is the actual position of the organization and makes projections of where the organization should be in 5 or 10 years. Because today the health care delivery is require to be done with higher standards of quality, the only way to reach to that point is through the strategic management.
4- Changes in the health care industry
"Terms such as patient rights, quality, internal and external customer satisfaction, strategic management and leadership have been in the focal point of modern-day healthcare management, and health institutions which keep up with the times need professional managers which are competent in work and have features of strategic management and leadership" (Budak, & Kar, 2014, p. 155). This statement shows how health care facilities need managers that have knowledge of strategic planning to keep up with the changes in the field. Considering there are changes coming in every direction it seems whether it be with new medications and treatment options, new policies being created or old ones revamped, new technology, and even new types of health care facilities opening, a facility needs to be able to adjust and even offer new ideas to not just grow but also to stay in business.
A benefit that I think is evident is convenience with minute clinics opening in drugstores and ambulatory centers. It was obviously strategic planning and gearing towards the future growth in health care that drove these facilities to open such a clinic inside their drugstores. "We have approximately 400 Healthcare Clinic locations at select Walgreens throughout the nation, and we're always looking to open new clinics to provide improved access to quality family healthcare for our patients" (Walgreens, 2014). This convenience seems to really be thriving if the opening of more and more locations with this feature is any indication. The benefit is that for so many people without a regular physician office or even in the case that they cannot get an appointment convenient in their current office, they can use one of these clinics to get a vaccine, get an antibiotic for an ear infection or sinus infection, and even go for minor injuries which is much more cost and time efficient than the local emergency room. This change and creation of such facilities, I think may also show managers of other types of facilities how the need for convenience is important and so may lead to further changes happening in other health centers with wait times and ease of appointments.
5- Changes in the health care industry
I feel that a shift from volume-driven fee for service organizations are changing to a more integrated patient centered care plan. In addition there has been consolidation of the smaller less efficient independent physicians' offices to a larger multispecialty group who integrates the skills and wisdom of the physicians that are in there office or hospital. Another thing that Strategic management has done is to produce greater vertical and horizontal integration of care and the employment of uniform, data based quality standards that reduce wide variation in care patterns across a community. There has been an accelerated use of cutting edge outsourcing strategies to reduce costs and improve health care value. Finally, risk based "bundled" or capitated payments that incent the transformation from the distortions of fee for service to fee for health through more integrated, cost effective care. (Emmott, C., 2014)
Some of the benefits that are already evident with the streamlining of patient services is the faster turnaround for testing results. In addition, the care that is available to patients is a care that is across the board better. With EMR's (Electronic Medical Records) Patients are now receiving care faster because their medical records allergies and other information is available to caregivers at the touch of a button. What used to take forever to get is now instantly available for viewing. Fewer mistakes are being made and medication errors are dropping. In effect, people are living longer. I think this is due to streamlining the medical industry and that has happened with leaders who practice strategic management.
6- Changes in the health care industry
The healthcare delivery system is rapidly changing. The healthcare reform cuts in reimbursement, transparency, competitive pressures, and consumerism warrant changes in healthcare organization's strategic management. Through the years, strategic management has changed because it is more flexible. Strategic flexibility is an organization's ability to change strategies according to the needs of the organization
(Hunger & Wheelen, 2011,). Health care strategic management has changed in the form of coordinated care, electronic medical records, and patient-centered care.
New reimbursement guidelines and quality care standards force organization to develop strategies that provide quality care that is cost effective. Many organizations have adopted care teams and interdisciplinary relations as a strategic plan. Electronic medical records are a form of strategic management healthcare organizations adopt to improve patient safety and to make the reimbursement of service more time efficient. Coordinated care and electronic medical records both complement patient-centered care as a strategic management tool because the trend is to help healthcare consumers become empowered and take an active role in the healthcare delivery system.
The benefits of the evolution of healthcare strategic management is health care quality are improving, becoming more efficient, which will eventually lower healthcare costs. The evolution of effective strategic management reflects the healthcare organizations ability to adapt to the changing healthcare system while not losing sight of the organization's values, goals and missions and ultimately contributes to positive health outcomes and lower costs.
7- Four phases of development
I believe all four phases of development are important, but in my opinion, phase 2, forecast-based planning is most important. The healthcare industry is dynamic and always changing. Effective healthcare leaders research future trends and then collectively determine how those trends may affect the organization. Once it is determined how the trends can potentially affect the organization, the team must forecast potential programs and services to address the future needs or challenges. One of the most important aspects of forecast based trends is to make a determination of who the organization will serve in the near future. I currently work for the local health department at the WIC clinic. The WIC (Women, Infants, and children) program provides free nutrition education and supplemental foods to low income women and their children. The director at my organization is currently utilizing forecast-based planning to determine the program's needs within the next year. The WIC program relies on government funding and must predict how many participants will receive services from our program in order to justify the need for funding. Forecast-Based planning helps my organization create services and programs to help attract and retain participants in certain groups. There has been a drop in enrollment of children aged 2-4 and in the number of women who breastfeed beyond the first week after delivery. My director has researched many new trends and opportunities that the healthcare reform and affordable care act will have available to the participants we serve. My director does a good job at predicting and anticipating the future to help with program planning and tapping into populations that had low participation in the past.
8- Four phases of development
In order to determine what phase is most important, the phases must be known. According to chapter 1 of Basic Concepts of Strategic Management, the four phases are:
1. Basic financial planning
2. Forecast-based planning
3. Externally oriented strategic planning
4. Strategic management
Accordingly, then I would have to say that for me the most important of these four is Strategic Management. The definition according to the text for strategic management is..."Seeking a competitive advantage by considering implementation and evaluation and control when formulating a strategy." (Hunger & Wheelen, 2001 Pg 3)
If the professional manager cannot change with the climate of the healthcare system, then they cannot lead effectively. One must be able to assess the possibility of errors, financial setback and other costly issues such as maintenance, work force and labor relations. If the leader cannot manage the assets of the organization in order to prepare for the worst then they certainly would be considered a fair weather manager, and I for one would not want them on my team.
Finally, I do think that in order to be successful at any venture, one must be focused on what is referred to in my organizations as the three c's customers, care and criteria. These three go hand in hand. Without customers, there would be no need for care or criteria, if you do not care there will be no criteria and customers, and if you do not lead and use proven criteria it will not matter if you have customers or care, you will soon not have a business to offer the client services.