An Expert Analysis on Enhancing Healthcare Delivery Systems

The Guide to Enhancing Healthcare Delivery

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1. Steps in the preparation for Strategic Planning Session

Strategic planning session involves laying a plan on how to get from point A through B in an efficient and effective way and having to enjoy the journey as well as getting to learn from the session. Notably, part of the session is the strategy and part of it is employed in execution. Incorporating a suitable strategy defines the way in which the selected strategy will be traveled and the effective planning ensures that everything is addressed. Averagely, the planning process may take three to four months; however, different organizations have their own time frame. Thus, for Webster Health System, I will choose a planning speed suitable for the team and the organization as well as leverage with the available resources.

Remarkably, there are four steps in preparing for the strategic planning session which include the phase duration, the determination of the organizational readiness, developing a schedule and team, collection of current data, and the reviewing of the collected data.

The Phase Duration

This is not the first step in the preparation process but it is a period of one to two weeks that involves an hour meeting with the facilitator, strategy director, and the CEO if essential to discuss the collected information and the way forward for the following strategic planning. In this phase, there are some questions that are a must to ask such as who the planning team will be, who will take the task of strategy director of the organizational strategic planning, and the changes to be expected after the initiate (Gurses et al, 2012). Markedly, this phase has some advantages like the planning team are assigned their responsibilities and roles, the schedule of planning is established, and the existing information of planning as well as a follow-up data collection. This phase is then followed by the first step.

Step 1: The Determination of the Organizational Readiness

Remarkably, being the first step and the most important in the planning session since it determines the success of the entire strategic plan. Hence, in Webster Health System, and being the Vice President of the Professional Services, there are questions that must be asked, for example, are the criteria and conditions for a successful session planning present, can given downfalls be avoided, is the given time appropriate for the organization to incorporate a session planning, and if not possible, what are the next actions to be taken? If these questions are all answered, then the organization will be ready to hold a strategic planning session and the first step is completed.

Step 2: Developing a Schedule and a Team

This step involves determining the team to be in the strategic planning session. the strategic planner, and in the case of Webster Health System, someone needs to be chosen to oversee the process of implementation as well as appoint some main decision makers and individuals to join the team. Notably, this team should be made of about 12 to 15 individuals (Begun et al, 2015).

Step 3: Collection of Current Data

This entails collecting various organizational information, for instance, the previous strategic plan, although it may not be current, values statement, vision statement, and mission statement, the business plan, the financial records of the past years, the marketing plan, and other information like projections, and sales figures.

Step 4: Reviewing the Collected Data

Being the final step, it involves reviewing the collected data from the last action with the facilitator and the strategy director. This will entail the trends you see, areas with obvious strengths or weakness and whether you have recently followed any plan.

2. The Members of the Strategic Planning Session

The initial strategic planning development stage in Webster Health System entails deciding on who should be the members of the planning session. Entirely, it is the duty of the Management committee in deciding the members of the strategic planning session. Generally, the team members include the staff, volunteers, and the management who will be given the responsibility of plan implementation and the users and the members of the organization who the plan will influence them (Hans et al, 2012).

Besides, the management committee will make part of the management session team in monitoring the plan implementation as well as the funding bodies and the community activists who will take part in the development of the strategic plan. Importantly, after the management committee has chosen the participating team, it is crucial to determine the level and the various stakeholders who will contribute to the future of the organizations planning session.

3. The Outline for the three one-day Planning Session includes;

• Creating a deep description of the expectations of the “final destination”, which involve developing an entire vision through taking a brainstorming process with imaginations on if the organization will one time dominate the health industry, what will happen if the industry triples in size and on the introduction of new products?
• The determination of the steps to be taken in achieving the organization’s vision. This will include down the steps into objectives that are taken as logical groups.
• Define ways of achieving the organization’s objectives through focusing on linking projects with their objectives such as investing in software new pieces, redesigning various processes and making investments in infrastructure.

4. Brief Background of the healthcare system

The main goal at Webster Health System is to change the health of the citizens as well as bring changes to the entire healthcare system. The goal is divided into various categories such as providing beneficent care by giving excellent expertise levels, continual relationships, and various specialties. Besides, the healthcare system strives at responding to the local community residents by giving the best services and ensure that the staff and employees will keep on giving quality superior service and care in the future, and as they do this, Webster Healthcare system will as well maintain financial and operational strength in guaranteeing the healthcare in the future in the local community.

Its mission and vision are focusing on a narrow target, as they continue developing and expanding their specializations. Remarkably, Webster Health System has witnessed profitability in the past years, for example, 6.3 and 5.1 percent profitability in recent years (Schneider, 2015). Nonetheless, has faced problems, specifically, issues that may affect the planning strategy, for instance, increase in population health, expansion of the healthcare system, and adverse events predicted to happen that may affect the healthcare system.

5. Past Strategies, Successes, and Failures

 Webster health System past strategies are diverse, which include; the organization was started in 1930 by Edward Webster. The healthcare system was a connection of the Central city Osteopathic Medical Center (OMC) then later graduated to an Osteopathic Hospitals affiliate of America. Webster healthcare organization, which was made of NFP hospital of Osteopathy later, developed ambulatory clinic care. Additionally, Webster health care expanded its specialization market to cover the needs of its patient through partnership in regards to ambulatory treatment of cancer as well as ensuring efficient on-site security in accommodating the expanded Security Prison and ensure that there are specially designed treatment rooms for inmates’ medical treatment (Safe and Reliable Healthcare, 2017).

The past failures of Webster health care include; high unemployment rate may result in lower health insurance numbers among citizens and there are possibilities that some organizations. Moreover, there are possibilities that unemployment can spread to Jasper and the neighboring areas and it is deemed that the rejection states in reference to compensation of workers may reduce, burdening all the costs to the state. Overall, this will result in an increased insurance company’s competition.

The successes of Webster Health Care system are that they have experienced expansions in health services; they have positioned their market through a vertical expansion with plans underway on adding to market expansion through developing an alcohol and drug addiction treatment and an oncology unit treatment in Jasper.

6. Relevant Historical Data in Regards to Case Review

 The healthcare system strives at responding to the local community residents by giving the best services and ensure that the staff and employees will keep on giving quality superior service and care in the future, and as they do this, Webster Healthcare system will as well maintain financial and operational strength in guaranteeing the healthcare in the future in the local community. Its mission and vision are focusing on a narrow target, as they continue developing and expanding their specializations (Swayne et al, 2013).

Remarkably, Webster Health System has witnessed profitability in the past years, for example, 6.3 and 5.1 percent profitability in recent years. Nonetheless, has faced problems, specifically, issues that may affect the planning strategy, for instance, increase in population health, expansion of the healthcare system, and adverse events predicted to happen that may affect the healthcare system.

7. How New Thinking will be stimulated

At Webster Health System, the new thinking will be stimulated through lowering access by changing quality and cost, taking money away from efforts of expansion as well as other NFP organizations’ departments, and further impact on the access of the healthcare. Moreover, the strategic planning ideas will be stimulated by creating a competition that is anticipated to lower deductibles prices for example in insurance, which would hopefully result to healthcare greater access, allow increased specialization access for patients, advance security and general patients safety, and keep on increasing the expertise levels.

8. Organizational Direction

The Webster Healthcare System has set plans for every department administrator to be accountable in increasing the activity of the outpatient by about 5 percent, and in case applicable, the departments are supposed to keep a 75 percent inpatient beds occupancy. On top of this, each administrator of every department will decrease the departmental cost by almost 3 percent and sustain a no increase in cost and make adjustments of resources on the basis of performance of mission the delivery of quality care as well as averagely employ a 5 percent operating system margin (Malden et al, 2012).

Most importantly, Webster Health System will focus on shifting to employer chosen insurance; 18 months projected new Security Prison Moderation IN Jasper, departmental administration that will reduce costs in reference to the department by approximately 3 percent in the coming years. Furthermore, the organization plans to push the other NFP organizations of healthcare in the coming years in order to pay lieu taxes.

9. Issues to Explore

The strategic plan at Webster Health System will focus on main issues, for instance, the improvement of facilities, improve the quality of care given to the patients as well as provide access of healthcare to the rural regions. On top of this, the plan is directed at addressing expense and annual operating budget, monitor and collect external and internal data so as to make measurements on performance for every objective, place the organization in a position to provide society outreach services, particularly to community’s high risk people, engage physicians in the efforts of cost reduction, create more chances of partnering with local care physicians in the society, regenerate contracts of management care, and focus on creating new services that will help the organization in raising the outpatient and inpatient services (Seidel and Lewis, 2017).

10. Review/ Updates to Mission, Vision, and Values

Considering that the main mission, vision, and values of Webster Health System were initially making expansions on health services, positioning the organization in the forefront at the market through a vertical expansion, making additions on expansions of the organization, making developments on the alcohol and drug addiction units of treatment and other expansions on the oncology unit of treatment through establishing a faster manageable hospital in Jasper, the major updates to mission, values, and vision are

• Current licensing of many inpatient beds
• The development of various departments
• The establishment of strong relationships with the employees in the organization
• The generation of strong stakeholders and community support
• Raising the availability of affordable and effective medicines
• An acute, and short term care hospital has been built to advance quality care services
• Focusing on the health system care, heavily on patients, and
• The focusing all the efforts on the advancement of the major technology in medicine

11. Strategy Framework and Formulations

Even though Webster Health System has been in existence for many years, a suitable strategy framework and formulations had to be put in place. Thus, in establishing the best strategy framework and formulation, compliance requirements, the number of facilitators in planning, the attention of the planning stakeholder’s participation, planning components attention, the strategic plan status evaluation, and the system’s strategic planning benefits were a must to be addressed.

In regards to Webster Health System, lack of a suitable framework and formulations internal incentive may result in incorporating formulation and framework strategic planning as stated in the Ministry of Health legal requirements. Resultantly, even if Webster Health System had earlier documented a strategic plan framework and formulation, the plan seems not been well implemented through valid evaluation for better results (Gurses et al, 2012).

12. Goals and Objectives for 3 to 5 years

Webster Health System has faced change in the past six years that will keep on changing in the coming years. This calls for the creation of envisioned future goals and objectives in reference to three to five years. Hence to come up with the suitable objectives and goals, the planning team must consider the anticipated ten years outcome, the organizations role in the coming years, the already created objectives, measurement of goals, expansion of the present initiatives, additionally of accountability and responsibility on the strategic plan, and the strategic plan report. Therefore, the objectives Sand goals for 3 to 5 at Webster Health System include;

• Regularly reviewing the strategic plan and its information
• Generate the best administrative and medical staff balance in every meeting in having an informed discussion
• The ways of making decisions associated with a specific cost curve
• The critical measures of the organization
• Other measures for reporting requirements and regulation
• Ways of covering the upcoming changes in the healthcare industry within three to five years
• How to achieve the organizations regulation
• How to address changes in operations, research, and treatments, and
• How to practice evolving medical practices

13. Major Initiatives

Major initiatives at Webster Health System that will be incorporated in the strategic planning to transform the organization include the development of the first regional comprehensive health center for genomics, creation of a health system that is simpler to navigate, easier to appreciate, convenient, with a system that is focused to maintain the health of the people. Additionally, the initiatives will incorporate a spiritual outside screening wholeness at the Webster system, and make health care available in the shortest distance to every individual (Begun et al, 2015).

14. Barriers and Constraints to Reaching Goals

Webster Health System, as well as any other healthcare system, is faced by barriers and constraints in achieving their set goals. These constraints and barriers must be a topic of discussion in the strategic planning session which include; low income among the patients and the nation as whole hindering the effective interventions for the most basic health problems, falling of prices in the healthcare sector, an increase in the funds in being given services in the system, lack of a well established health systems in achieving health outcomes improvements, and the failure in research in the field of health system (Hans et al, 2012).

15. Situational Analysis Considerations

Situational analysis consideration in healthcare involves collecting methods for managers to incorporate in analyzing a system’s external and internal environment in understanding the firm’s business environment, customers, and capabilities. At Webster Health System, the situational considerations will include;

• Health and health requirements social determinants such as projected and current health challenges and burdens
• Expectations like projected and current services demand and social expectations
• Performance in the health system and performance gaps in response to expectations and needs
• Health sector capacity in response to anticipated and current future challenges
• Health resources system and resource gaps in response to expectations and needs, and
• The stakeholders’ positions

16. Plans for Implementation

In implementing the strategies particularly for Webster Health System, various ways need to be emphasized which include; modifying or developing a process through suitable procedures and policies, improving effectiveness and efficiency of the implementation process, delivering and designing new services, changing the existing culture, allocating resources, incorporating organizational structure changes, and developing an annual goals operations that are in line with the strategic objectives and goals, and for every operational goal, with the development of an action plan having deadlines and tactics (Schneider, 2015).

The figure above is an example of an implementation plan.

17. Financial Impact from Major Initiatives

The financial impact due to the major initiatives at Webster Health System are diverse and they include; the underutilization of preventive care leading to more complex spending and advanced diseases. Again, patients suffering from chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension have not been in a position to get effective and proven treatments, for instance self management and drug therapies to effectively manage the diseases as well as health care operators lacking the support on payment and the tools required in working and communication of improved effective patient care.

18. Wrap-up with key points

At Webster Health System the key points are that the organization is looking forward to turning to partnership and apps with revamped websites, business models and retail stores outside the system in overcoming and achieving their goals or the objectives. Additionally, the organization has planned on pursuing new sources of revenue beyond the services of healthcare, the system has transformed into a clinical management company asset, focused on helping providers reduce the clinical devices number in use to lower maintenance costs, healthcare innovators keeping their efforts with emphasis on healthcare that has consumerism attention search from hospital executives industry like the ascension division hospital, incorporate digital tools in building an extensive relationship with the community individuals in empowering them and improving the peoples’ health through daily wellness and personalized health.

Most importantly, the health insures focus on tapping into the desire of patients for much better customer service and clarity (Safe and Reliable Healthcare, 2017). Overall, the reduction of healthcare systems pressure and the physician practices in demonstrating their expertise will make them give low prices better care. Thus, this is the main point at Webster Health System.

19. Board Approval Considerations

At Webster Health System, there are various considerations for board approval in regards to the organization affiliation, which include; making a decision on whether or not to involve affiliations, making an informed choice on the core affiliation process advisors, making establishments on decision criteria in evaluating the various offers, making examinations of the affiliation models, communicating the process of affiliation with the community and the physicians, enlighten the members of the board on the duties of fiduciary, avoiding and identifying potential roadblocks and liabilities, discussing on the compliance concerns regulatory, and avoiding government regulators problems (Swayne et al, 2013).

20. Communicating Across the Organization

At Webster Health System, communicating across the organization is crucial because in caring for patients, it calls for different people required to share information about the patients and make discussions on their management. Consequently, there is a rise in interest and the use of communication and information technologies in supporting health services. However, even though communication in healthcare is important, communication systems get limited attention and the adoption of simpler clinical services like electronic mail is not common to many health services. A gap exists in the broad understanding of the communication services role in the delivery of health care. Hence, the organization is working in addressing this problem in their system.

21. Plans to update the strategic plan

As a result of its significance and the long-term effects, the strategic plan needs to be updated and revised at calculated intervals. Notably, different organizations lay plans of revising their plans each year, with other firms update their plans in 3 to 5 years. This is the case at Webster Health System because their goals and objectives are set for 3 to 5 years duration. Hence, for the organization to update their plan, they will be required to make considerations on if the organizations activities and projects are set within the objectives, strategy, and vision parameters, make reviews on both external and internal factors that may need to be changed because they affect the organizations ability of achieving their goals and objectives, and finally track potential scenarios as well as develop plans of contingency that maintains track in regards to achieving the goals and keeping the system’s vision (Malden et al, 2012).

References

Begun, J. W., Kaissi, A. A., & Sweetland, D. L. (2015). An Exploratory Study of Healthcare Strategic Planning in Two Metropolitan Areas/PRACTITIONER APPLICATION. Journal of Healthcare Management, 50(4), 264.

Gurses A. P., Ozok A.A., & Pronovost P.J. (2012). Time to accelerate the integration of human factors and ergonomics in patient safety. BMJ Qual Saf. 21:347–351

Hans, E. W., Van Houdenhoven, M., & Hulshof, P. J. (2012). A framework for healthcare planning and control. In Handbook of healthcare system scheduling (pp. 303-320). Springer, Boston, MA.

Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. Zukerman, A. M. (2012). Healthcare strategic planning. (3rd ed.). Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press

Safe and Reliable Healthcare. (2017). White paper: A framework for safe, reliable, and effective care 2017. Retrieved from https://www.safeandreliablecare.com/blog

Schneider, S. (2015). Analysis of management practice strategic planning: A comprehensive approach. Asia Pacific Journal of Healthcare Management. 10(3). GS27-GS35.

Seidel, L. and Lewis, J. (2017). The Middleboro casebook: Healthcare strategy and operations (2nd ed.)

Swayne, L., Duncan, J. and Ginter, P. (2013). Strategic management of health care organizations (7th ed.).