Curtin Hospital Information Management Strategic Plan - Coursework Example

Curtin Hospital Information Management Strategic Plan Curtin Hospital Information Management Strategic Plan Occasionally, organizational executives find that it is important for them to make key decisions that might potentially affect the entire destiny of the organization for years to come. These decisions are essentially designed to try and address the biggest and most critical issues that might happen to be facing the given organization. According to Steiner (2010), during the 1960’s the terms long-range planning, formal planning, comprehensive managerial planning, corporate planning and total overall planning were commonly used so as to describe the process of strategic planning. More and more however, the term formal strategic planning is now widely used to describe exactly what is meant when these phrases are employed. Strategic planning is described as a management tool that is of aid in helping organizations to focusing their energy and ensure that all the members of the given organization are working towards the attainment of a certain given goal (Mercer, 1991). It also serves to aid in adjusting and assessing an organization’s direction in response to a changing environment. In essence, strategic planning is a disciplined effort that helps to produce fundamental actions and decisions that guide exactly what an organization is, what it is engaged in doing, why it does it with a particular focus on the future. Strategic planning is important as it can greatly determine the overall success of a given organization. Strategic planning describes exactly where the business is going and how it might get there (Jackson, 2007). it helps in clearly define the exact purpose of the organization as well as in establishing a number of realistic objectives and goals that are in-line with the company’s overall mission. These goals and objectives are ascribed a defined time frame that is well within the organization’s overall capacity for implementation. Strategic planning is also important as it helps in communicating the organization’s goals and objectives to its various constituents. It is important for an organization’s employees and stakeholders to be made aware of what the organization’s goals are so as for them to be able to effectively work towards the attainment of these goals. Strategic thinking and focused planning is important as it can aid in uncovering the emerging market conditions, customer segments, as well as service and product offerings that are in the best interests of the organization. A targeted approach to opportunities and markets which guides marketing and sales efforts and as well as other business decisions will ultimately have the effect of translating into more profits in the bottom line of an organization; in addition to this, it will also help the organization in securing a relatively stronger market position. In essence, strategic planning is identified as serving to ensure the selection of only those services that are deemed as bringing profits to an organization’s operations (Speigel & Hyman, 1991). It has consistently been shown that one of the top reasons as to why employees leave an organization is due to a general lack of job satisfaction. It is of relatively critical importance thatemployees to be motivated so as for them to come to work, and feel like part of the team. Strategic planning helps to provide meaning and purpose to the work conducted by employees and as such, it can have the effect of giving them focus and greatly motivating them to continue working for an organization (Fitzpatrick, 2008). In the identification of various the issues that need to be included and addressed during the development of a strategic plan, it is important to identify the issues affecting a number of key factors. Some of these factors include: Determine where the organization is: In developing a strategic plan, it is important to include issues that determine exactly where the organization is (Stringham, 2012). For a relatively accurate picture of exactly where an organization is, it is important for the business to conduct internal and external audits so as to better understand the competitive environment, the marketplace as well as the organization’s actual competencies. Determine where the organization is going: Issues affecting where you may want to take your organization over time also be included in a strategic plan. This helps to set the long-term direction of the enterprise as well as in clearly defining is vision and mission. From this analysis an organization will be able to determine the priority issues that are deemed to be significant to the overall well-being of the enterprise and that may happen to require the immediate and full attention of the entire management team. The strategic plan should then be designed to be focused on these key issues. Identify what is important: Strategic plans should have issues that help to identify what is important to it as this will aid it in focusing on where it aims to be over time. This will aid in setting the long-term direction of the enterprise as well as in clearly defining both its vision and mission. From this analysis, it will be possible to successfully determine the priority issues. These are the issues identified as being so important that they often require the full and immediate attention of the organization’s entire management team. Determine who is accountable: In developing a strategic plan, it is of critical importance to establish the accountability of individuals towards the success of the strategic plan. As a plan continues to evolve and include tactics and strategies, it is important to clearly identify exactly who will be responsible for the attainment of given objectives within the strategic plan (Jackson, 2007). A Plan of Implementation: A key challenge noted to often face organizations in relation to planning is the actual implementation of the strategic plan. It is common for organizations to continue with doing things the way they have always been done despite their having developed proper strategic plans. At the start of developing a strategic plan, organizations should be keen to develop an implementation process that will address issues such as how the plan will be moved forward how the plan’s progress will be tracked, how accountability will be established as well as when/how a meeting will be crated to review the plan (Bryson et al, 2011). After the strategic planning process, the organizations should then review and finalize the implementation plan as it will be the main basis for the roll out and will serve to provide a foundation for action. Resourcing: Another issue that should be addressed in a strategic plan is the implication that the proposed strategy will have on an organization’s resources. This will eventually reflect on not only the financing requirements, but also a number of other factors such as equipment, staffing levels and premises. Stakeholders are important and should be involved in the formulation of a strategic plan. Stakeholders are those individuals that happen to be directly affected and can affect the eventual outcome of a strategic plan. Getting and successfully keeping a number of the key stakeholders on board is recognized as being one of the most important aspects of a strategic plan. Stakeholders aid in the shaping of strategic plans during the early stages as well as in ensuring that adequate amounts of resources are made available to aid in contributing towards the success of a strategic plan. They also serve to provide critical insight pertaining to the probable reaction that a strategic plan will receive and this makes it possible for the necessary adjustments to be made so as for the strategic plan to win organizational support (Alston & Bryson, 2013). Other benefits of stakeholder involvement in a strategic planning process is a general reduction in the level of distrust in the strategic planning process or its eventual outcome, an increase in the level of commitment to the strategic plan objectives and process as well as heightened credibility of the project’s outcomes. The value of an effective plan for a health information management department / service cannot be over emphasized. Health information management is described as being the practice of analyzing, acquiring and protection both the traditional and digital medical information that are vital in the provision of quality patient care. Strategic planning is important in health information management departments as it helps in charting out exactly how these departments will continue to achieve their objective of serving bridging roles that connect the clinical, operational and administrative functions. The strategic plans also help in creating a framework that will be used by the department in acquiring the necessary health information technology that will aid in it managing health information and ensuring that this digital format information is on hand whenever it is needed while constantly maintaining the very highest standards of confidentiality, data integrity as well as security. A number of issues are noted to be impacting the health information / management department / service at Curtin Hospital that can be addressed in the strategic plan. A key issue that requires to be addressed is ensuring that all the patent medical records are made available in one central location instead of at two different locations. Keeping of only two years worth of medical records in the primary storage area might cause doctors at the hospital to experience difficulties in planning out treatment courses for patients that have had long-term medical conditions extending over two years. With the planned expansion of Curtin Hospital’s bed capacity from 330 to 550 by 2016, it is important for the department to have in place an appropriate strategic plan that will help it in increasing its technological capacity and be able to adequately handle all the new patient records. the increase in the number of patient admission by an additional 20,000 new patients in the next financial year and the expected grow of a further 10% growth per annum in the number of new patients over the coming years will also necessitate that a strategic plan be formulated to prevent the current systems from being over stretched. It is also imperative that the hospital’s health information department to ensure that it develops a strategic plan on how it will increase its employee workforce so as to cater to the increased number of patients. The current staffing might potentially be overwhelmed by the projected increased number of patients. Conclusion It is important for organizations to ensure that they develop appropriate strategic plans that will aid them in charting-out exactly how the organization will be able to achieve its goals and objectives. In the development of a strategic plan, it is important to first establish a number of factors including where the organization currently is, identify what is important, determine where the organization is going, establish resourcing as well as create an implementation plan. In developing effective strategic plans organizations should ensure that they do not overlook the inclusion of key shareholders as they play a key role in ensuring that the organization is able to achieve its objectives. Curtin Hospital Information Management Department Strategic Plan Mission Statement To become a model of effective hospital information management through the use of technological and human resources and in the process guarantee the trust and security of patients, while assuring honest and ethical best practices. Vision Excellent healthcare, propelled by timely and efficient information management delivered locally. Executive Summary In this strategic plan, the health information department at Curtin hospital is noted to have a number of concerns that require addressing for the future period of 2015-2020. This includes the fact that the hospital does not currently have the capacity to hold more than two years of patients records and is forced to hold the older records at a different location. The strategic plan addresses this issue by suggesting that better Information systems be adopted by the hospital to help it in easily storing a larger amount of data. Another issue that has been noted to be affecting the department is that with its current staffing, the projected increase in bed capacity as well as the expected increase in the number of patients that are attended to as the hospital will over stretch the personnel at the department and severely cripple their ability to provide quality services. The strategic plan recommends that the number of employees in this department be increased to ensure that quality services are provided to the patients. In this strategic plan, the issue of information security has been noted to be of great concern as it can easily result in malpractice resulting from unauthorized access to patient information. The strategic plan has recommended that improved security measures be implemented to ensure that the information of patients at the hospital is secure from any potential unauthorized access by hackers. By conducting a forces analysis, the strategic plan has been able to identify the various forces that can potentially affect the overall success of the hospital’s health information department. Whereas the helping forces have been identified as being increased bed capacity, better patient numbers, as well as the availability of skilled employees, the main hindering force has been recognized as being the lack of an integrated hospital information management system. SWOT Analysis The principal aim of undertaking to develop a strategic plan is to try and bring an organization into a balance with its external environment and to sufficiently maintain this balance over time. It is instrumental in aiding organizations to focus on opportunities, strengths, threats and weaknesses (Murray-Webster & William, 2010). Curtin Hospital can be able to maintain this balance by evaluating both its services and programs with the intent of maximizing the organizational performance. SWOT analysis can be identified as being the preliminary decision-making that helps in setting the stage for this work. Overview of Curtin Hospital Information Management Department’s SWOT Analysis Internal Strengths Weaknesses 1. The use of IT Systems enables at the department enables the easy sharing of information 2. Digitization of patient data at the hospital enables for data to be organized, processed, formatted and stored in a virtual format. 3. The department is well staffed. 1. Inability to handle a large volume of patient information. 2. Relatively poor data security. 3. Projected future increase in patients will cause the department to be under-staffed. External Opportunities Threats 1. The department can adopt the use of new technological advances. 2. The department can implement measures designed to improve data security. 1. It is possible for patient records to be hacked. SWOT Analysis Summary The department enjoys a number of significant strengths that include the use of advanced IT Systems, ample staff level and the use of digitized patient data. However, it is important for it to work on its capacity to hold large volumes of patient data at the primary location. Some of the opportunities that are available for the department include the fact that it can attempt to further upgrade its IT systems and start using more modern and effective systems. It is critically important that the department deals with the threat of information security as this can have a serious impact on not only the department, but also the entire hospital as it can result in its being sued on grounds of malpractice if patient information were to be obtained and used by a hacker. Detailed SWOT Analysis of Curtin Hospital Information Management Department Strengths In a SWOT analysis, strengths are identified as being the factors that serve to prompt outstanding organizational performance (Griffin, 2014). In Curtin Hospital’s Health Information Management Department, some of the strengths can be identified as including. IT Systems: The predominance of IT has had a rampant effect on a number of industries around the world including the healthcare industry. The use of IT at Curtin Hospital’s Health Information Management Department has created a platform whereby patient medical records can be easily accessed and shared. Digitization of Clinical Records: Hundreds of people visit Curtin Hospital on a daily basis for a large variety of reasons. The consulting diagnosis and biological tests made by physicians are effectively stored under the names of the respective patients as patient records. With time, the successful management of such huge amounts of data and their safe storage as records can eventually become problematic for hospitals. The digitization of data at the hospital has made it possible for Curtin Hospital such organized, processed formatted and stored in a virtual format. Well Staffed: Understaffed hospital departments tend to have a negative impact on not only the employees working in the department, but also the patients. If a department is understaffed, the workers tend to be over worked and greatly demotivated resulting in poor service delivery. However, with its ample staff, Curtin Hospital is able to easily attend to all the hospital’s clients. Weaknesses Weaknesses are the organizational factors that will have the effect of reducing the quality of healthcare or increasing its cost (Griffin, 2014). A number of weaknesses can be noticed at Curtin Hospital. Insufficient ability large volumes of patient information: One of these weaknesses is that the hospital is only able to successfully hold hospital records spanning up to only two years at its primary location. This can potentially prove to be an enormous disadvantage in the event that information spanning a longer period of time is urgently required. Low staffing levels: With the expected increase in bed capacity as well as the number of patients visiting the hospital, the current number of staff members at Curtin Hospital’s health information management department needs to be increased from the current levels that will soon prove to be grossly insufficient to attend to the increase numbers of patients. It is especially important to employ at least two more information release officers as the position is grossly understaffed and with only one employee. Having only one employee might result in problems in the event that the services of that employee are required and the employee happens to not be on duty. Security: It is possible or hackers to attack server-based hospital data repositories and access the confidential data of Curtin Hospital’s patients. This poses a considerable threat of invasion of privacy and identity crisis. It is important for the hospital’s information management department to ensure that the security of its systems is at optimal levels. Opportunities In a SWOT analysis, opportunities are perceived as being the significant new business initiatives that happen to be available to a healthcare organization (Griffin, 2014). Improved Security: It is possible for Curtin Hospital’s health information department to develop more effective and better security protocols for its systems. It is important to address the various security concerns in order to successfully prevent any invasion of privacy as well as instances of malpractice resulting from the unauthorized use of an individual’s hospital medical data. New Technology: There are a number of new technological innovations that can be used at Curtin Hospital’s health information department. These new systems can hold a larger amount of data as well as process this data at greater speeds as compared to the current systems that are currently in use at the hospital. Threats According to (Griffin, 2014), threats are factors that can potentially negatively affect the performance of an organization. Security concerns: In the management of information, there are some potential security concerns that might arise. At hospitals such as Curtin Hospital, the possibility of malpractices using the data of other patients is deemed as the biggest threat to the entire hospital information systems industry. It is primarily due to this reason that the health information management department at Curtin Hospital needs to ensure that the threat to digital security that is posed by hacking is effectively tackled. Curtin Hospital Health Information Department Force Field Analysis It is the duty of the various healthcare organizations to implement changes that are widely perceived to be beneficial to their staff and patients. The key primary areas that are noted to be critical in driving change in healthcare generally include customer satisfaction, quality improvement, healthcare workforce diversification as well as the improvement of the working conditions. A force field analysis is designed to take the SWOT analysis a step further by identifying the particular forces that are hindering or driving change. In essence these are the main forces that can be noted to be responsible for driving the organization’s opportunities, strengths, threats and weaknesses. The particular forces that serve to propel a healthcare organization towards the attainment of its goals are referred to as helping forces while those that are deemed to be blocking the progress towards a goal are referred to as hindering forces (Kaufman, et al. 2003). After the successful identification of the negative and positive forces, it is possible for the health information department of Curtin Hospital to develop the relevant strategies that will aid it in minimizing the negative forces while simultaneously working to strengthen the positive forces. For Curtin Hospital’s health information department to achieve some form of success, the driving forces must of necessity outweigh the resisting forces (Myers et al, 2012). When this state has eventually been attained, it will then be possible for Curtin Hospital to move from the current reality towards a certain preferred future. Curtin Hospital Helping Forces Ample and skilled personnel: At Curtin Hospital’s health information department, the department has a sufficient number of skilled staff that is able to ensure that the department runs smoothly. This factor can be noted to improve employee satisfaction which subsequently results in the improved quality of service that is offered by employees. Increased bed capacity and Patient Numbers: An increase in the bed capacity and number of patients at Curtin Hospital can generally be expected to result in improved profits for the hospital. Although this can potentially increase the overall amount of work done by it health information department, it might also potentially result in the provision of better remuneration for the hospital’s employees. This will trigger a positive increase in employee job satisfaction and motivation. Curtin Hospital Hindering Forces Lack of an effective integrated hospital information management system: Currently, Curtin Hospital is only able to keep two years of patient records in its primary location. It is important for this capacity to be increased as some of the specialties that are offered at the hospital require that the long-term records of patients be analyzed by doctors before they attend to the given patients. These specialties include Oncology and plastic surgery. The planned development of a mental health unit will also require that long-term patient records be made available. Delays caused when attempting to obtain patient records can at times result in the creation of life threatening situations. Evaluation and Recommendations Curtin hospital’s information management department is noted to have a number of strengths that include the use of IT Systems in information management, and the availability of digitized clinical records. However, the department does have some weaknesses that include low staffing levels, inability to hold large volumes of patient information. It is important for the department to take advantage of some opportunities that are available to it to improve its information management system, this includes improved technology in addition the department should ensure that it tackles some threats such as security concerns. Some of Curtin hospital’s helping forces include increased bed capacity, and the availability of ample and skilled personnel. The hospital should maximize the use of these helping forces to help it in maximizing its profits. A key hindering force in Curtin hospital is the lack of an effective integrated hospital information management system and tt is critical for Curtin hospital to resolve this issue and ensure that it stops impeding the hospital in its attempts to attain its goals. References Alston, F. K., & Bryson, J. M. (2013). Creating and implementing your strategic plan: A workbook for public and nonprofit organizations. San Francisco, Calif: Jossey-Bass. Bryson, J. M., Anderson, S. R., & Alston, F. K. (2011). Implementing and sustaining your strategic plan: A workbook for public and nonprofit organizations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Fitzpatrick, T. A. (2008). The Relationship Between Job Satisfaction and Psychological Climate Among Community Banking Employees. ProQuest. Griffin, R. W. (2014). Fundamentals of management. Jackson, P. M. (2007). Nonprofit strategic planning: Leveraging Sarbanes-Oxley best practices. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley. Kaufman, R., Oakley-Browne, H., & Watkins, R. (2003). Strategic Planning For Success. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Mercer, J. L. (1991). Strategic Planning for Public Managers. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO. Murray-Webster, R., & Williams, G. (2010). Management of risk: Guidance for practitioners. Norwich, England: The Stationery Office. Myers, P., Hulks, S., & Wiggins, L. (2012). Organizational change: Perspectives on theory and practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Spiegel, A. D., & Hyman, H. H. (1991). Strategic health planning: Methods and techniques applied to marketing and management. Norwood, N.J: Ablex Pub. Corp. Steiner, G. A. (2010). Strategic planning. Simon and Schuster. Stringham, S. (2012). Strategic leadership and strategic management: Leading and managing change on the edge of chaos. Read More