Dental Public Health Program - Assignment Example

Management Work and Policy Paper The concept Management work Work management involves evaluation of potential and current projects, setting the appropriate strategic goals and tactical objectives, validation of corporate initiatives and project execution to attain business value (Bob & Ron, 2010). It also involves combination of different leadership approaches and effective coordination of working teams in achieving organizational goals and objective in most efficient and effective manner. The management of oral health program strategic plan project will entail the following: First, review of project goals, values, mission and vision. Second, management of the implementation of core project functions such as monitoring the burden of disease and preventive services, supporting of public health research, identification and facilitation of project partnerships, building of capacity and infrastructure for sustainable implementation, program evaluation and policy development (Bob & Ron, 2010). Second, review of public health priorities in relation to dental health. Third, draw project work plan with phases, tasks, and milestones to track progress over time. Forth, monitor costs and progress of projects in relations to oral health budgets and project modifications of work plan, strategic goals and timelines. How managers strategize Managers strategize by focusing on energy investment as a critical ingredient of growth and productivity. For example by establishing what consumes the energy of a company and what replenishes it in respect to operations, people resources and financials. Managers also strategize by focusing on conversations in meetings. According to Bob & Ron (2010), managers are responsible for the quality of each conversations made in every company meeting. They are bound to paraphrase the questions to be of thought provoking nature for purposes of creating ideal outcome for instance a manager can pose a question like “how can we best increase our monthly sales turnover by 15 per cent” in a meeting with sales teams . In addition managers strategize by aligning organizational goals with the organization’s vision and mission. Situational Analysis in Dental Public Health Program Situational analysis is the logical gathering and evaluation of past and present data relating to social, economic, political and technology for purposes of identifying external and internal forces that may impact on company’s performance and choice of strategies(Linda, Jack & Peter, 2012). It also aims at assessing future and current organization’s opportunities, strengths and weaknesses. A situational analysis in the implementation of oral health improvement education program in district hospitals will describe and analyze the situation regarding the oral health status and health services offered in the district hospitals. The situational analysis will be primarily an assessment to which the current dental health services addresses oral health needs. It will aim at describing and analyzing the prevailing situation, to explain what is happening and identify external and internal factors which are facilitating or preventing progress in retention of oral health education in the district. In addition, the analysis will identify and highlight the priority problems and needs of the district hospitals for purposes of developing plans and strategies to effectively address issues related to oral health in the hospitals. Moreover, strengths and weaknesses of the current oral health program will be explored as well the opportunities available with the current program. Comparison of the Three Approaches to Understanding Effective Leading The three approaches to effective leading in work setting are the traits approach, the behaviors approach and the situational approach. The trait approach is based on the proposition that skills, traits, characteristics and abilities inherent in some people makes them more effective leaders than others. Leadership traits include emotional intelligence, general self efficacy, extroversion and conscientiousness. The behavior approach is based on the assumptions that specific behaviors that compose a particular style of leading might be associated with leadership success. According to Beaufort (2004), behavior approach was developed after the traits approach failed to extensively explain rationale behind effective leading. The situational approach integrates behaviors and traits approaches to explain the reasons behind effective leading as a combination of behaviors and traits with specific situations. The approach emphasizes that some leaders may be effective in some situations while others may be not as different situations call for different approaches. In addition, the analysis of internal and external situations while selecting the ideal managerial approach based upon exercise leads to more effective leadership. The situational approach makes more sense than the other two because of the following: One, effective behavior is contingent upon the prevailing situation in the organization’s environment and thus it becomes of paramount for any manager to consider situational factors for effective decision making which is part of effective leadership. Examples of situational factors inherent in contemporary work environment may include: personality traits and physical characteristics of the followers, energy and activity levels, interpersonal and task competence possessed by followers and nature of influence from the external environment. Two, effective leadership calls for flexibility in decision making by managers and the available motivational approaches which are based on unique combination of factors in fitting distinct working environment(Bob & Ron, 2010). Therefore, situational approach will best lead to effective leadership in such a dynamic environment as compared to trait and behavioral approaches. The Proposed Senate Bill 694 Amendments Amendments to the bill were introduced by Senator Padilla in February 18, 2011 with view of introducing a new section on the business and professions code, relating to dental care. The new section of the bill seeks to compel the Director of Consumer Affairs and his board to conduct a dental care need assessment among the California residence in order to set out the road map towards addressing the increasing concerns in dental and oral health (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). The Consumer Affairs board is expected to contravene a group to be in charge of routine assessment of dental needs and recommend effective solutions to such problems. The selected group will be expected to carry out an assessment among the children population to determine children eligible to access dental health care services stipulated under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). The group will be tasked to determine all the necessary logistics including the required workforce to ensure effective provision of essential dental care services. The new amendment provides an opportunity to examine the regional dental care needs and the resources available to address such needs (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). The amendment was triggered by previous findings which have ranked tooth decay as the most serious health problem that remains insufficiently addressed among the children both at the state and the national level. A study conducted prior to the introduction of the amendment bill revealed that unmet dental needs translated into approximately 874, 000 missed school days and estimated loss of about thirty million dollars among the Californian schools (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). California’s hospitals also reported increased number of emergency room visits involving preventable dental conditions to the tune of 83,000. The cost associated with the treatment of such cases is extremely high thereby necessitating immediate action to address such cases. According to a report by Children Now (2013), the number of children without access to dental care continues to increase. This trend has been attributed to inadequate funding for oral health among children such elimination of adult denti-Cal and elimination of safety-net dentists previously taking care of dental care needs for approximately 3.5 million children (Children Now, 2013). Other changes that have contributed to the increasing dental health problem in California include the suspension of the state’s Children’s Dental Disease Prevention Program which was previously ensuring provision of oral health care for over 300, 000 school-going children. Stakeholders The amendment bill is expected to entrepreneurs in the sector of dental health through introduction of the new section the existing bill. The amendment is expected to increase the number of people seeking dental health care services. The proposed dental care needs assessment group will identify oral needs and recommend effective strategies for addressing such needs. The bill is supported by school managements following the adverse effects of poor dental health on the organizations. Enactment of the bill is expected to contribute immensely on efforts to address the oral health problems which have been a major cause of absenteeism among the school-going children (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). The community represented by the senator responsible for introducing the amendment to address the plight of the community members suffering from increased oral health problems. The community will particularly benefit from implementation of the bill through identification and prioritizing dental care needs as well as recommendation of amicable solutions to such problems by the group contravened by the Consumer Affairs board (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). The last stakeholder in the amendment is the state and the federal governments which have to collaborate to provide the required resources and workforce to ensure the recommended strategies are implemented. The governments will benefit from overall improvement in the health of the Americans through implementation of the provision under the proposed new bill. Expected Implications of the Amendment Bill The Consumer Affairs Board and its director will be mandated to play a critical role in addressing the problem dental or oral health in California. This move will be crucial in complementing effort made by other public health promotion agencies and institutions in preventing oral health problems. Enactment of the bill into law will translate into increased access to essential dental care services especially among the underserved population (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). Children will be the greatest beneficially in the enactment of the bill into law because it seeks to address the oral health problems among the school going children. The bill is expected to curb the problem of tooth decay which has emerged as a major area of oral health not only in California but also across the entire nation. The proposed dental care need assessment group will play a critical role in analyzing dental care needs among children and propose solutions that would contribute significantly in preventing various oral health problems (California HealthCare Foundation, 2013). The bill help the state cope with budgetary through establishment of comprehensive and sustainable state oral health action plan properly drafted to address some of the unmet dental care needs such as tooth decay among schoolchildren. Establishment of surveillance and reporting system for oral health will promote effective resolution to oral health problem by identifying emerging and unmet needs. Personal Opinion and Conclusion The proposed amendment bill holds great promise towards addressing oral health problems as some of the major challenges improving the wellbeing of the California residents. I strongly believe that the bill presents some the most potential strategies for finding long-term solutions to the oral health problems. Implementation of the bill’s provisions will benefit school going children as the worst hit population by the oral health problem in not only California, but across the country. However, the bills fails to provide amicable solutions to the problem of financing dental care services and oral health promotion programs as one of the major setback currently faced by different states in achieving improved wellbeing of their people. Although, the bill proposes better strategies for addressing unmet dental care needs, the problems of funding as indicated by budgetary cuts towards the health care sector could prove a great challenge in realizing the anticipated benefits from its enactment into law. In conclusion, policy changes through legislative bills could prove crucial in promoting oral health and alleviating some of the changes experienced in carrying out successful oral health promotions. Public policy is essential in creating the roadmap towards achieving improved oral health not only at the state level but also at the federal level of government. References Beaufort, B. L. (2004). Managing health programs and projects. New Jersey, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Bob, W. & Ron, M. (2010). Strategy: Process, content, context, an international perspective. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning. California HealthCare Foundation. (2013). Designing a new tier of dental professional in California. California Healthline, August 13, 2012. Retrieved from http://www.californiahealthline.org/think-tank/2012/designing-a-new-tier-of-dental-professional-in-california.aspx Children Now. (2013). Expanding children’s access to & use of oral health services. Children Now. Retrieved from http://www.childrennow.org/index.php/learn/oral_health/ Linda, E. S, Jack, D & Peter, M. G.(2012). Strategic Management of Health Care Organizations. New Jersey, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Read More