Reference no: EM132285492

Writing Assignment

PURPOSE

This is a second opportunity to practice professional business writing, developing a persuasive argument, and focusing on a specific audience with my direct feedback.

CONTEXT

The Case

First Health of Oregon (a fictional company) is the leading hospital and health care system in Oregon. Dedicated to offering superior care, education, research, and service, their 12,000 staff members serve over 300,000 patients annually with a wide spectrum of needs, from cardiovascular surgery to preventative medicine to health education programs. They also have a 98% patient approval rating, one of the highest in the nation.

FHO prides itself on being a rewarding, respectful place to work. Employees have a great deal of autonomy and privacy, a supportive work environment, generous benefit packages, and many opportunities to take optional health and other self-improvement classes.

Recently, FHO has been facing serious financial challenges that require immediate changes to its employee health care package. Like employers nationwide, FHO has faced double-digit increases each year in the cost of the health insurance provided as a part of employee benefits. Despite optional wellness programs available to all employees, the FHO workforce has the same rates of unhealthy behavior (smoking, obesity, etc.) and related health problems as the rest of the nation, and its insurance costs have remained high.

The vice president for human resources at FHO, has been charged with recommending immediate changes to the employee health care policy. Besides addressing the immediate financial need, the vice president's recommendations must conform to FHO's value statement, which is posted on its website:

Values Statement of First Health of Oregon

The values of First Health of Oregon (FHO) determine our mission, vision, and services. We value the following:

• A patient's total care, including mind, body and spirit

• Excellence in education for health care providers

• Quality of care and respect for life

• Charity, equality and justice in health care

• Leadership in health promotion and wellness

• Excellence in research

• An internal community of mutual trust and respect

FHO's mission is to improve the health of our patients and community through innovation and excellence in care, education, research and service.

The vision that guides FHO is as follows: "First Health of Oregon is an acknowledged leader in quality clinical care, education, and research. Excellence is measured by objective evidence and established best practices. Exemplary levels of respect and dignity are given to patients and their families, while professionalism and collegiality mark relationships among all employees and physicians."

A community's needs are real. So is the desire to help. FHO has an ambitious vision for the future, one that requires everyone's help to make a difference.

That's why we've issued "A Call to Change," FHO's mission in action. A Call to Change is a call to improve the health of Oregon residents and beyond, and a personal call to every FHO employee to be the best they can be both personally and professionally. We want to set the standard for good health so the rest of Oregon-and the country-will follow.

The Dilemma

There's no way around it: the employees are going to have to pay more for their health care. But which employees should pay?

FHO's employees are of different types. FHO has "healthy" employees, i.e., employees who require few medical treatments and incur few medical expenses, and "unhealthy" employees, i.e., employees who incur more expenses for doctor visits and prescriptions. Among the unhealthy employees, some are unhealthy due to genetics or bad luck. Others are unhealthy due to lifestyle choices (poor diet, little exercise, smoking, etc.). So who should pay?

On the one hand, the company views health as a community project, including the health of its own employees (nurses, doctors, administrators, and staff). When it comes to health, FHO likes to think that "they're all in it together." Should all employees share in the rising costs of health care, then, including the healthy employees? Is that fair to those who are making good lifestyle choices?

Is that consistent with FHO's "A Call to Change"? Since spreading the expenses across employees doesn't incentivize unhealthy employees to change their lifestyles, is it hypocritical of FHO to tell their patients to live one way but allow their employees to live another?

Or, should the unhealthy employees pay more? Does that violate FHO's sense of community or its employees' autonomy? If an employee's health isn't affecting her work, would it be discriminatory or an invasion of privacy to single her out, and thus be an affront to FHO's culture even if allowed by law? What about the unhealthy employees who are trying to live healthy lifestyles but are still costing the company more money? Should they pay more?

TASK

FHO's board of directors has asked you, the vice president for human resources, for a concise (1 page maximum) recommendation about which employees should pay more in FHO's new health care plan, and why, that also addresses objections to your recommendation. The board is aware of all of the facts in the case, so you do not need to summarize them. Also, since they're exclusively interested in this question of which employees should pay more for health care, they're not open to other ideas about how to reduce costs in the company.

Though this is a recommendation prepared for the board, it's impossible to guarantee it won't be shared with others in the organization. So your audience could be the employees themselves. Set your tone accordingly.

Follow the attached formatting guidelines to produce high skim value and clear organization. Bring two hard copies to class and post your paper to the Writing Assignment #1 link on Canvas (VeriCite) by the due date. I will evaluate your memo on the criteria outlined in the rubric posted on Canvas.

[High Skim Value Example]

To: Board of Directors

From: Your Name, Vice President of Human Resources

Date: September 29, 2016

Re: How to organize and format a business memo

An opening paragraph typically states why you're writing, sets the proper tone, gives your bottom line recommendation, and previews what you'll discuss. You do not need a heading for the opening of a short document. This document shows how to organize a memo using major sections and headings and how to break up longer sections with bullets/numbers or subsections. Obviously, your document doesn't need to look exactly like this. Use your own judgment while following the general guidelines for high skim value.

Descriptive Headings and Short Paragraphs

For your major sections, use descriptive, major headings to organize your document and improve its skim value. By its major headings (which are bolded), this document clearly has two major topics. A reader should get the gist of your memo by skimming the headings alone. So avoid generic headings like "Section 1." Include enough content to aid understanding.

Keep your paragraphs short. Avoid block text. As a rule of thumb, paragraphs should have more than one sentence but not more than six or seven lines of text. Left justify your paragraphs and use line breaks between them. You should not indent the first line of a paragraph if you're using line breaks.

Bullets and Subsections

As a rule of thumb, if you have more than three or four paragraphs under a heading, consider using bullets/numbers or subsections to improve the skim value of the major section. If you choose to use bullets or numbered items in your memo, use at least two at a time but not so many that it lowers your skim value:

• List items, sentence fragments, or short sentences in bullets

• Avoid using bullets for paragraphs

• Keep bullets "parallel," i.e., start them with the same part of speech (e.g., verbs or nouns)

Sometimes, subsections with minor headings are more appropriate than bullets for improving improve skim value.

Subsections vs. Bullets

Whereas bullets and numbered items are useful for lists and single sentences, minor (secondary) sections are good for paragraphs. Consider indenting these.

Using Minor Heading

Use a different graphic emphasis than you use for your major heading (e.g., italics instead of bold). Keep your formatting consistent, and avoid redundant emphasis (e.g., italics and underlining).

A closing paragraph typically summarizes benefits, reinforces the tone, and gives a call to action. You do not need a heading for the closing of a short memo.