Redesigning Storage Area and Scanning Health Records of Samsa Hospital - Case Study Example

Project Management Plan Name: Institution: Project Management Plan Executive Summary This paper is about a project to redesign storage area and scanning health records of the samsa hospital. The project will last for a span of 11 months. The new systems are anticipated to provide extensive benefits to the consumers and the stakeholders. Consumer worries concerning the project implementation have been identified and the consumers look forward for a system which will improve their relations with the health providers as well as cater for their health needs. The main aim of this project is to improve accessibility, accountability, and the durability of health records at the Samsa hospital for the benefit of the consumers. The project will be directed by a Policy Officer, a five member board, and an S-health group comprising of stakeholders who will provide their ideas concerning the implementation of the project. $100,000 is set aside for this project. The project will kick off on 3rd October 2013. The new systems will have long term benefits for the organization and various strategic plans will be implemented to manage any anticipated risks. Introduction and Background Samsa hospital is a 300-bed public metropolitan hospital that currently utilizes a paper-based medical record. The majority of medical records owned by samsa hospital are stored in off-site storage and only the last two years of admissions are stored on-site in a small department. The hospital is expected to expand and a project management plan is to be developed for change or planned in “redesigning storage area and scanning health records” in health information service department. This project is expected to take place in a period of 11 months from 3rd October 2014 to 3rd November 2015. The new design of the storage area and scanning of health records will have significant benefits to the clients especially those suffering from chronic illnesses (Aiken et al., 2012). For instance, a full contemporary medication record will be easily accessed for the client and the health professionals. The medications provided will be safer and of better quality since there will be no repetitions of medical histories as the client in instances where the client is treated by a different medical specialist. There have been numerous supports for the implementation of the new design. However, there are numerous concerns by consumers associated with the scanning of the old health records which include exposure of individuals’ personal details, and restriction over the individuals who can have access to the stored information. The most significant concerns include safety; appropriateness; and efficiency measures which will lead to the improvement of health outcomes and majority of the contributors appreciate the significance of redesigning the storage system of the hospital (DeVore & Champion, 2011). Appropriate storage is very significant for simplified management of health records and ensures survival and easy accessibility for the longest time possible. Health records are part of the Samsa hospital assets and ought to be managed appropriately. Redesigning the storage area will involve careful scrutiny of the existing records to determine what records are present, where they are stored, which are needed for the future, for how long do they need to be kept and how they will kept in and organized manner. For appropriate control of the records, a method of record classification will be determined and the value of each record. Records found to be of no value will be destroyed. This project will facilitate the scanning of health records for active patients and any other records dated the year 2014. After scanning, the original documents will be stored together with other old records while the scanned digital records will be stored off-site. Digital records will also be stored by use of magnetic media and optical disks. Care will be needed when storing these records because significant data loss may occur due to any slight physical damage of these objects. Previous executive consultations made a list of issues that the health consumers need to see their advancement. These issues are documented as a section of the hospital’s consumer’s health principles on the Storage-health implementation. In the assessment of any project that will affect consumers’ health records and sequence of events, the consumers will look forward to a system that will lead to an improvement in the health results by proving them with a sense of authorization and the development of improved relations between the consumers and the health practitioners. This project will lead to improved access to services (Blumenthal & Tavenner, 2010). There will be extensive informatory measures and consultations about the new developments which include the potential utilization of the information it entails. Consumers will be given a chance to make voluntary decisions as whether their health records will undergo scanning or not. The process will be free from any form of pressure and based on full information. No consumers will face any form of discrimination for their unwillingness to participate in this project. Consumers will be able to access their personal records and will make a decision concerning the people who have the right to access their information. The consumer confidential health data will be secure and the management of the health systems will be transparent and responsible. There will be monitoring schemes which will be adopted so as to oversee the implementation of the privacy standards. Consumers will be offered with independent schemes which will handle any form of complaints and severe punishments will apply where the privacy policy will be violated. The development and management of the new storage systems and scanning of health records will be monitored independently and their consequences on the consumers. The Samsa hospital has upheld a robust obligation to the establishment of health storage facilities that will cater for the consumer requirements. Objectives The main objective of this project is to facilitate proper storage of records at the Samsa hospital. This project will aim at improving communication and relations with health practitioners concerning improved record keeping strategies. The project aims to carry out various consumers sounding and present it to the health management of the hospital with respect to approval procedures, electronic confidentiality and safekeeping, reliable patient identifiers and use of secondary data. Also, the project aims at supporting knowledgeable and effectual consumer representation on national agencies for the improvement, execution, and oversight of the record initiative program which is properly in link with the health consumer organization. Finally, this project aims at establish links between consumer representatives who work as part of the national health policy on the issues concerning health records and those who implement the advancement of health storage systems at the community level. Project Structure The Samsa hospital will involve a Policy Officer who will handle the project. The execution of the samsa hospital project will be supervised by a five member board which will include delegates from the samsa hospital membership with the desired skills which may include involvement in similar projects. Continuous knowledgeable proposals from health consumers concerning the project will be very significant. To attain this, samsa hospital has strategized to carry out various activities during the duration of the redesigning storage area and scanning health records project. In the previous years, samsa hospital has carried out workshop for consumer representatives in the region whose aim was to reinforce consumer involvement in the execution of this project through provision of opportunities for idea sharing, identification of possible challenges and establishment of strategies for an effectual consumer representation. An S-health Resource Group, which will comprise of consumer delegates and other interested parties will be formed so as to facilitate sharing of ideas concerning the new development in the storage and scanning records. This group will make communication amongst its members via electronic mail and information is shared speedily and effortlessly with other concerned consumer delegates. Samsa hospital plans to make consultations with the member organization so as to provide ideas concerning the implementation of the project. Members will be free to contribute their ideas concerning the project on the samsa hospital official website debate forum. The samsa hospital project has established several information programs and seminars with member organizations during the project implementation period to promote the growth of consumer awareness concerning the electronic health records. In the new design, records that are in active use will be stored where they will easily accessible and near the working areas. When not in use, these records will be transferred to the corporate storage region. The proposed storage regions will be away from windows to prevent direct sunlight which results to fading. Inactive records will be stored in a separate storage region which will include file facilities and shelves, to replace the existing cupboards. Records with continuing value will be stored at an archival repository in a manner that will facilitate long term conservation. There are measures on how the temperature and humidity will be controlled at the archival repository. The new storage design will have extensive storage capacity in comparison to the old design. The process of scanning health records will be carried out in a manner that will minimize any form of damage and will facilitate maximum preservation and security of the original data. Project Resources There is a capital cost of $ 100,000 set aside for the last three years for the implementation of the project, $ 20,000 from the year 2011; $ 40,000 from the year 2013, and $ 40,000 from the year 2014. This project is funded by the Health board capital allocation and this fund is revealed in the Capital program consequently. Any alternative sources of funding are welcome to support project. The scope of the project execution will affect the budget structure. Five contractors have been contacted; three of which include information technologists who will provide information concerning the scanning systems that will best suit the role of the project as well as the consumer needs have been identified. The rest two include designers who will design and construct the new storage facilities. The technologist will also be involved in the fixing and maintenance of the new storage systems. Areas with the largest impact will be given priority over the areas with less impact. The orientation of the health practitioners and consumers on the usage of the new systems will be carried out by two information technologists among the three. $10,000 will be utilized in the construction of the new storage areas according to the proposed design. $10, 000 will be used for consultation on the best forms of hardware and software for scanning and storage of the digital records. $20,000 has been set aside for fixing purpose of these systems. $20,000 has been set aside for the purpose of training of consumers and the health practitioners on the usage of the new systems and the arrangement of the old documents based of the proposed categories. $10, 000 will be used for the purpose of monitoring the programs to maintain the standard privacy policies. The rest of the capital will be used for miscellaneous costs and for maintenance of the new facilities. When the project will be successfully implemented, the Samsa hospital will acquire long term financial benefits because the new systems will eliminate the high costs and risks associated with the old storage systems (James & Savitz, 2011). Also, the hospital is expected to expand; hence, the new storage systems will play a vital role in the general quality of services offered at the hospital with the rise in the number of consumers. Process of identifying stakeholders Stakeholders refer to those people who are affected by the work at the samsa hospital or have an effect on the process (Crane & Ruebottom, 2011).They may refer to individuals with extensive interest in the work for various reasons such as knowledge, political, or philosophical. Stakeholders are classified depending on their effort in relation to the project at hand (Crane & Ruebottom, 2011). Primary stakeholders refer to individuals who are directly affected by the actions of the project. Primary stakeholders exist on both sides of the balance; a regulation that is beneficial to one party be have detrimental effects on another group. Secondary stakeholders refer to individuals and parties that will get indirect effects as a result of implementation of this project either positively or negatively. Key stakeholders refer to people who are among the first two groups and play a significant role in the implementation of the project and those who play a significant role in the samsa hospital. They may include staff, funders, and government officials (Pacheco & Garcia, 2012). Stakeholder identification is among the first step of the project interpretation. In the process of stakeholder identification, it is vital to look beyond legatees and policy makers who are obviously easy to identify. Brainstorming is one of the major ways of identifying stakeholders (Buntin, Burke, Hoaglin, & Blumenthal, 2011). Brainstorming will involve the staff working at samsa hospital, executives, and other individuals who are already aware about the project. This process is vital in the identification of different categories of stakeholders. The other member organizations ought to be consulted concerning other parties that have been involved in the work. The already identified stakeholders may also provide vital information on other stakeholders who may have not been included. Simple announcements at community gatherings and events may lead to identification of other stakeholders who may have been left out. Risk Identification During the implementation of the new record keeping system, there will be various risks and benefits associated with the implementation of this program. The systems are implemented to benefit the health consumers; however, the risks must be identified in the implementation of this project. Every record kept under the new systems is subject to organizational and legal policies (Schoen, Osborn, Squires, Doty, Pierson & Applebaum, 2011). The rules authorize the handling of information from its creation, the holding and the discarding. Majority of the rules that protect the paper work will apply in the protection of the digital data after the scanning of the health records. A legal evaluation is vital for the identification of the novel rules which were used in the previous recording system and may be used in the new project. Project analysis is very significant so as to determine the exact role that will be played by the new systems (Longhurst et al, 2012). The process of scanning health records and rearrangement of the old records pose threats to the hospital’s information system such as destruction and data manipulation. The risks ought to be identified and dealt with from the beginning of the project so that thy may be diminish as the project gets fully implemented (Farah, 2011). For effective elimination of the risks, there ought to be a program to ensure legitimacy, reliability, accessibility and safety of information. Also, the process of risk identification should involve brainstorming with other stakeholders, inadequacies identification, relying on past experience. The redesigning of the storage facility exposes documents to damage due to excessive handling, and misplacements due to human error. The new scanned records are prone to various risks such as unintended loss by human fault, technological tragedies such as viruses and technological failure, and criminal activities such as theft (DesRoches et al., 2012). Change Management Method Management method for the new systems ought to take effect as soon as possible. Effectual management of the health record system is dependent on the kind of informatory systems incorporated. Nevertheless, there are opportunities of a variety of managing options if the record keeping needs are identified during the designing of new systems are and during the advancement of the traditional methods. Management will play a very significant role in acceptance of the hospital’s staff by the consumers (Sheikh et al., 2011). The trust is built on the hospital capability of the hospital to be accountable during the implementation of this project. Easy access and durability of health records facilitated by this project is significant for the evidence of the past and current status of the consumer health status. It will be used to make sensitive decision concerning medication of the patient. The records will be very significant in the operation of the hospital procedures and their absence may result operational catastrophe. This project will provide a unique opportunity for accountability enforcement (Kemper et al., 2011). With the improved facilities, the samsa hospital has the potential to offer transparency and easy accessibility of the health records than the era before. In the scanning of health records, proper decisions will be required for the most appropriate logical mappings so that the original information is retained and the new documentation is referable. Timeline Conclusion The Samsa hospital is expected to expand and a project management plan is to be developed for change or planned in “redesigning storage area and scanning health records” in health information service. The new design and the scanning of health records will be very significant for the fulfillment of the consumer needs. Consumers will no longer have to undergo repeated tests because the new recording systems will provide easily accessible information concerning the health past information of the consumer. There will be improvement in the medication offered and significant expense reduction which are associated with repeated tests. This implementation will undergo breakthrough with presence of a management team and a set of rules which will oversee the proper usage of a data to maintain confidentiality of information. For the full participation in the project, consumers are encouraged to present their views concerning the application of the new storage facilities. This step plays a very significant role for the acceptance of the new system by the consumers. There are various risks associated with the implementation of the new systems; however, the risk can be eliminated by establishment of a program that will ensure legitimacy, reliability, accessibility and safety of information. References Aiken, L. H., Sermeus, W., Van den Heede, K., Sloane, D. M., Busse, R., McKee, M., & Kutney-Lee, A. (2012). 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