Strategic Management (Shouldice Hospital) - Case Study Example

?Strategic Management (Shouldice Hospital) Table of Contents Overview of the Case 3 Time Context 5 Case Viewpoint 6 ment of the Problem 6 ment of Objective 7 Statement of the Areas of Consideration 8 Alternative Course of Action 9 Choice among the Alternative Courses of Action 11 Conclusion 12 Recommendations 13 References 14 Overview of the Case The case study is about the Shouldice Hospital. The founder of the hospital was Dr. Earle Shouldice. It was during the World War II when Dr. Shouldice was invited to serve the Medical Examining Board. There he noticed that most of the young men starved of enlistment while they were eager to serve their country. He further noted that these army persons needed treatment in order to treat hernias prior to being called as physically fit for the training in military. The hospital is situated in Toronto which was at the southern part of Canada. It is worth mentioning that the hospital constituted of two main facilities, i.e. the hospital as well as the clinic in one particular building. The designs of the rooms were outstanding that permitted free flow and movement of the patient and provided an opportunity to roam around the rooms of one another thus enabling to create a culture of the service with the assistance of the people who worked for the Shouldice Hospital. Initially, the hospital was built with the capability to hold 36 beds. Later with the increase in the demand, it attempted to increase the quantity of beds to 89. The service culture of the hospital had been rational. More emphasis was laid upon the training since they expected their procedures to remain constant. The operation procedure followed in the Shouldice Hospital took into account that the patients got recovered as early as possible and lead a normal life much before the patients who conducted their operation in other hospitals. It can be depicted that experience matters a lot. The hospital has been treating hernia for more than 55 years. Since the hospital constituted of the trained team, it was successful in curing approximately 300,000 hernias at approximately 99% rate of success. The medical guarantee has been presented by the hospital since 55 years. The patients at the hospital took care of themselves partially. This was done for the quick recovery of the patients. They were supported to move around the halls and conduct conversation with the other patients as well as the surgeons. With the view of motivating the patients to walk, the steps were made with smooth inclination connecting the floors. The rooms were designed at the comfort of the home. The carpets were placed so that the patients didn’t feel that they are at hospitals. It can be worthwhile mentioning that the case study of Shouldice has been the perfect example of the well-built as well as service delivery procedures that have been quite focused. Over and above providing the quick, cheap and quality surgery, the hospital was also successful at conveying comfortable as well as exceptional experience to the entire set of patients coming for their treatment. There are multitudinous reasons behind the success of the hospital ranging from the surgery techniques to pleasant environment. The patients at the hospital were able to enjoy their meals in the general cafeteria to get the chance of interacting with the patients as well as the doctors. The treatment that is post-operative was sought to be the most significant factor of treatment that the patients receive. For the mental and physical recovery, no television or telephone were kept in the rooms and the patients were further motivated to walk. It is worthwhile to mention that the target segment of the hospital has been the healthy patients who were detected to recuperate fast. These patients had primary inguinal, one of the forms of hernia. Those patients possessing health problems other than hernia were not treated in the hospital. The logic behind admitting the patients those who were at a controllable stage was that they would get back to the normal stage quite fast and thus other patients of hernia could have been treated at a greater frequency. Other numerous benefits have been associated with the admission of the healthy patients in the hospital. It has been found that the hospital focuses upon keeping the employees happy by the concept of profit sharing schemes. The employees in addition to being paid the basic salary were also provided with a part of the profit. This tends to motivate the staffs and thus contribute towards the accomplishment of the goals of the organization. Since the organization is successful, and is preferred by most of the people, the operating capacity of the hospital has been close to 100%. Therefore, the organization raises its concern regarding the inability to meet the demands of the future (Heskett, J. & Hallowell, R., “Shouldice Hospital Limited (Abridged)”). Time Context The problem has been detected when the top management anticipated increasing demand in the near future. Since the hospital has been performing at the best operating level and the patients are delighted with the treatment offered by the hospital, it is quite obvious that there would be increasing demand in the near future. Case Viewpoint This section of the case study aims at identifying the main owners of the problems. In the case study of Shouldice Hospital the main owner of the problem has been the management itself. It is the management that needs to be held accountable to deal with the changes occurring in the workplace. Statement of the Problem This section of the case study aims at understanding the main problems that has been associated with the particular organization preventing it from achieving the specific goals. In relation to this case study the main problem that has been associated has been the inconsistency of the change. Although the hospital has been performing at its best operating level, consisting of specialized workforce with quite limited flexibility in the plant, it is unable to meet the needs and / or of the chosen market niche. It can be depicted that if the hospital tries to meet the demands then the existing staffs may not be comfortable and it might lower the quality of the services that is provided to them. Conversely, if the hospital fails to meet the demand and/or need it would invite more competition and would lead the hospital towards losing substantial market share. Statement of Objective It can be stated that the problem defined can lead towards finding various objectives. This section is aimed at shaping the outputs of the particular components as well as determination of the purpose of the case study. The main objective is to analyze the problem and thus find feasible solution to the problem so that the objectives are achieved. In this case study, it is aimed at providing solution to the Shouldice Hospital. The main objective is to determine, how the demand in the hospital could be met. The case study is related to strategic management. Thus, the case study will aim at providing relevant theories in order to serve as the basis and thus to provide theoretical background in order to support the study. At first, the case study will analyze the present capacity of the hospital. After that, the aim of this case study analysis is to determine the future needs of the hospital. It will be aimed at providing valuable strategies that can be implemented in order to solve the problem. The report on Shouldice Hospital will attempt to address the suggested options. However, due emphasis will also be laid upon the alternative courses of actions. Statement of the Areas of Consideration In order to find out a feasible solution to the question it is prudent to consider various facts that will serve for the purpose of evaluating the problems. It has been evident from the case study that the operating load of the hospital fluctuated from 30 to 36 operations in a day. A single surgeon is proficient of performing three to four operations in a day. The day for a surgeon ended by 4 PM. Currently, the hospital appears to have been conducting approximately 137 operations. While in the peak season, it appears to have conducted 165 operations in a week. However, it can be stated that the hospital has the following capabilities. The examination room in a week seems to have the capability of 270 patients, while the potential numbers of the admitting procedure in a week has been 240 patients, and the nursing station in a week appears to have the potential of 240 patients. The operating room capacity seems to be 188 patients for each week. The surgeon’s capability seems to be 178 patients per week. The other operational related facts are associated with the number of operating days. The hospital operates 5 days in a week (Docstoc, “Case Study Report of Shouldice Hospital”). Alternative Course of Action In light of the above mentioned facts and the problem the alternative course of action that the hospital can take is to add have operations on Saturdays as well. The management can further add a floor that would consist of 45 hospital beds. Other alternatives available to the hospital are that they can either establish a complete new facility that would be treating hernia. If the hospital doesn’t find this solution viable then they can consider expansion into other types of operations. At present, it is important to analyze each of the alternatives as suggested in this context. Scheduling Saturdays as operating days, the hospital may gain various benefits. It can be determined that finance is quite important for any business organization. In this scenario, the individuals plan for the financial resources (Accounting Education, “Importance of Finance”). It can be depicted that if Shouldice Hospital starts operating on Saturdays as well then no additional investment will be required. The other advantage is that the hospital staffs will still be able to maintain its quality. Nonetheless, the main disadvantage that may arise if operating on Saturdays commences is that there might be requirement of scheduling about 23-25 operations on Saturday. In addition to this all the six surgeons as well as the supervising surgeons might have to work on this particular day. The involvement of huge number of personnel may have a positive impact upon the phase of restructuring of the work schedules (Kennedy, G., “Strategic Negotiation”). Therefore, it can be revealed that a few more personnel may be required in order to conduct the operations successfully in comparison to the weekdays. Scheduling the operations on Saturdays may further seem to be creating infringement to the contract that the hospital had with its surgeons. It may further receive disagreement from the senior doctors. In this context, if the management of the Shouldice Hospital decides to add up a new floor in order to expand the operation then the rooms available with it will be 134 since it had 89 rooms previously and the new floor would include 45 rooms. The main benefits that the hospital may encounter by doing so are that it will be relatively easier for the management to control as well as monitor the quality. By doing so, it will be capable to retain its culture as well as the environment. The main limitation when adding up a floor is that the management will have to schedule the doctors round the clock so that the patients are handled effectively. The work load may rise in the aspects of admissions, laundry, accounting, kitchen as well as housekeeping with the increment in the number of beds or the expansion of the plant. The most imperative consideration in this context is that while adding up of the new floor, the other patients to be treated at the hospital may get distracted because of the construction (Scribd, “Shouldice hospital”). When the management considers the second facility for the treatment of hernia to manage the demand, it may encounter both pros as well as cons. The advantage may stem from the fact if the location is chosen quite near to the target customers. If the chosen location suppose is in the USA where there are ample of hernia patients requiring treatment then it will add to the trade of the hospitals. The competitive position of the hospital may also get a boost and thus the profits may be hiked. It can further be stated that if the correct location is chosen then it not only leads to cost savings but also raises the revenues of the firm (Lin & Wu, “Evaluating Optimal Location Selection of Taiwanese Hospitals Using the Analytic Hierarchy Process”). It would further be beneficial if it intends to expand in the location where there are quite less restrictions. The government or the state as well as the municipalities may intervene in the process which may have a negative impact (Longo, F. & Cristofoli, D., “Strategic Change Management in the Public Sector: An EFMD European Case Book”). The existing personnel will be benefited since they will get the opportunity to work at new locations. Moreover, they will get the scope of change to transfer their knowledge and/or skills in this new facility. The main disadvantage that they might encounter is that they might require significant amount of money. Long term cost as well as other types of cost is associated when switching to other locations. The cost is either intangible or tangible in nature. In addition to that it might be difficult for the Shouldice Hospital to monitor the quality of the service offered to the patients. Moreover, the management may find it troublesome to create the same type of culture as well as ambience in the second facility. The hospital may as well face competition from the existing facility. Choice among the Alternative Courses of Action After having analyzed all the available alternatives for the Shouldice Hospital, it can be stated that it would be viable for it to start operating on Saturdays since it will provide more advantages to the hospital. There will not be requirement of any new surgeons. They will be able to maintain their quality for which they are renowned. In addition to this there will not be requirement of any fresh investment if this alternative is chosen by the top management of the company. Conclusion Managing change or innovation can be considered as the most difficult task in the hospital industry. Since the industry has been experiencing change in its operating environment as well as in its stakeholders, it has become quite important for the hospital industry to introduce changes as well as innovate to survive in the competitive environment. It can be stated that the new leaders in the hospitals must take the responsibility to manage the change. It is their duty to have the ability to transform the overall organization and need to have the capability to communicate regarding the changes to the rest of the people in the organization so that the quality doesn’t get hampered. In Shouldice Hospital, it has been noted that the demand is exceeding the supply since it delivers the superior service in comparison to the other hospitals. Therefore, it will be prudent for the hospital to fulfill the demand by expanding its operation on Saturdays. Recommendations It can be recommended that since operation on Saturdays in suggested to meet the demands, it would be feasible for the hospital to pay due attention towards training the staffs in the hospital so that this change can be managed more efficiently. The top managers need to check if the doctors or the staffs are willing to work on Saturdays or not. Their commitment level towards the change needs to be evaluated constantly. Their views can be considered prior to adopting the operations on Saturday. Other alternatives can also be demonstrated to them in order to view if they are discontented with the proposed alternative (Green, M., “Change Management Masterclass: A Step By Step Guide To Successful Change Management”). References Accounting Education. “Importance of Finance”. May 27, 2011. Finance, 2011. Docstoc. “Case Study Report of Shouldice Hospital”. May 27, 2011. Docs, 2010. Green, Mike. Change Management Masterclass: A Step By Step Guide To Successful Change Management Kogan Page Publishers, 2007. Heskett, James & Hallowell, Roger. Shouldice Hospital Limited (Abridged) Harvard Business School, 2005. Kennedy, Gavin. Strategic Negotiation Gower Publishing Ltd, 2007. Longo, Francesco. & Cristofoli, Daniela. Strategic Change Management In The Public Sector: An EFMD European Case Book. John Wiley & Sons, 2008. Lin, Chin-Tsai & Wu, Cheng-Ru. “Evaluating optimal location Selection of Taiwanese hospitals using the Analytic Hierarchy Process”. May 27, 2011. Abstract, No Date. Scribd, “Shouldice hospital”. May 27, 2011. Doc, 2011. Read More