Healthcare Strategic Planning
Healthcare organizations must look to the future and envision the type of organization it wants to be for its patients, staff, and community. To achieve this, a strategic plan will guide the organization through any type of change. Strategic planning is a “written outline of the future that should enhance efficiency and effectiveness, encourage unity and focus, empower meaningful change, and streamline decision-making” (Sare & Ogilvie, 2010, p. 59) and it begins with identifying an unmet need. The purpose of this paper is to outline the need for an additional Nurse Clinician as well as expanding the responsibilities of all Nurse Clinicians to ensure the health record technology is being used to its maximum potential in the Sunnybrook Veterans
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Centre.
Unmet Need In 2011, the Veterans Centre (VC) implemented an electronic health record (EHR) system that created an interprofessional method for staff to document care and could also be used to assess organizational needs and identify trends. Currently, the task of auditing the entire system is the responsibility of one EHR Nurse Clinician. Included in the EHR system is the Minimum Data Set (MDS) assessment tool, which is used to assist with care planning, resource allocation, and quality improvement. Much of the documentation in the EHR system populates the MDS with the rest of the information obtained through chart reviews done by three MDS Nurse Clinicians, one of who is temporary. Thus, it is essential the data entered in the EHR system is accurate and the competencies of everyone who uses the system must be maintained (Cheesman, 2011). Therefore the need for an additional Nurse Clinician as well as changes to the responsibilities of all the Nurse Clinicians is needed.
Mission, Vision and Values An organization’s mission, vision, and values are the “foundation for [the] organization’s identity” (Sadeghi, Barzi, Mikhail, & Shabot, 2013, p.
172) and communicate the purpose, direction and philosophy of the institution to the employees and public. For Sunnybrook, this means it wants to be there when it matters most, invent the future of healthcare and provide care with excellence, collaboration, accountability, respect and engagement (Sunnybrook Health Science Centre, 2016). These statements are the starting off point for strategic planning and serve to guide the actions of those who will develop and implement the plan (Desmidt, Prinzie & Decramer, 2011). By adding one Nurse Clinician and changing the role of all Clinicians, senior management will have accurate data on the care provided and resources utilized in order to develop a plan that will meet the needs of those who reside in the facility now and in the …show more content…
future.
Background
In the past, unit nurses completed the MDS, however this became too costly as staff needed protected time to do this.
Additionally, the data was not always accurate as staff used subjective, rather than objective data. With the position now centralized, the job of the MDS Nurse Clinician ends with the completion of the MDS and any gaps or errors in the documentation are forwarded to the Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) to address, it is the same for the EHR Nurse Clinician. The main role of the APN is to implement evidence-based research into practice and to educate staff on new clinical procedures and while documentation is within their role profile, senior management believes it is not the best use of their time as the efficient use of resources is crucial to ensure fiscal responsibility and the delivery of quality care (Weiss,
2010).
Stakeholders
As with any change, it is important to identify key stakeholders who will help implement and sustain any change (Marquis & Huston, 2015). The stakeholders who should be involved begin with the senior management, who need to approve a new Nurse Clinician as well as any role changes. Additionally, a Human Resources representative would ensure the role profile accurately reflects the new responsibilities. Finally, the nurse managers and APNs should be included to ensure a smooth transition and acceptance of the new Clinician responsibilities.
Vision and Goal With limited resources available in healthcare today, management must ensure all nurses are practicing to the full scope of their practice (Schaffner, 2009). The proper utilization of the expertise of Nurse Clinicians and APNs is essential in having an efficient healthcare system, and this is the vision for this strategic plan. Therefore, the goal of the new role responsibilities is to advance the scope of practice for all the Nurse Clinicians through the appropriate and focused use of resources.
Broader Issues When looked at from an organization perspective, changing the responsibilities of the Nurse Clinicians may seem simple, however it is a huge change to the workflow of all staff in the VC. With over 500 professional staff, this change will require a period of adjustment and will take some time until fully understood and utilized by everyone.
Summary
Using data and input from stakeholders, strategic planning allows an organization to address unmet needs and further its mission and vision and serve community.
Centre.
Unmet Need In 2011, the Veterans Centre (VC) implemented an electronic health record (EHR) system that created an interprofessional method for staff to document care and could also be used to assess organizational needs and identify trends. Currently, the task of auditing the entire system is the responsibility of one EHR Nurse Clinician. Included in the EHR system is the Minimum Data Set (MDS) assessment tool, which is used to assist with care planning, resource allocation, and quality improvement. Much of the documentation in the EHR system populates the MDS with the rest of the information obtained through chart reviews done by three MDS Nurse Clinicians, one of who is temporary. Thus, it is essential the data entered in the EHR system is accurate and the competencies of everyone who uses the system must be maintained (Cheesman, 2011). Therefore the need for an additional Nurse Clinician as well as changes to the responsibilities of all the Nurse Clinicians is needed.
Mission, Vision and Values An organization’s mission, vision, and values are the “foundation for [the] organization’s identity” (Sadeghi, Barzi, Mikhail, & Shabot, 2013, p.
172) and communicate the purpose, direction and philosophy of the institution to the employees and public. For Sunnybrook, this means it wants to be there when it matters most, invent the future of healthcare and provide care with excellence, collaboration, accountability, respect and engagement (Sunnybrook Health Science Centre, 2016). These statements are the starting off point for strategic planning and serve to guide the actions of those who will develop and implement the plan (Desmidt, Prinzie & Decramer, 2011). By adding one Nurse Clinician and changing the role of all Clinicians, senior management will have accurate data on the care provided and resources utilized in order to develop a plan that will meet the needs of those who reside in the facility now and in the …show more content…
future.
Background
In the past, unit nurses completed the MDS, however this became too costly as staff needed protected time to do this.
Additionally, the data was not always accurate as staff used subjective, rather than objective data. With the position now centralized, the job of the MDS Nurse Clinician ends with the completion of the MDS and any gaps or errors in the documentation are forwarded to the Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) to address, it is the same for the EHR Nurse Clinician. The main role of the APN is to implement evidence-based research into practice and to educate staff on new clinical procedures and while documentation is within their role profile, senior management believes it is not the best use of their time as the efficient use of resources is crucial to ensure fiscal responsibility and the delivery of quality care (Weiss,
2010).
Stakeholders
As with any change, it is important to identify key stakeholders who will help implement and sustain any change (Marquis & Huston, 2015). The stakeholders who should be involved begin with the senior management, who need to approve a new Nurse Clinician as well as any role changes. Additionally, a Human Resources representative would ensure the role profile accurately reflects the new responsibilities. Finally, the nurse managers and APNs should be included to ensure a smooth transition and acceptance of the new Clinician responsibilities.
Vision and Goal With limited resources available in healthcare today, management must ensure all nurses are practicing to the full scope of their practice (Schaffner, 2009). The proper utilization of the expertise of Nurse Clinicians and APNs is essential in having an efficient healthcare system, and this is the vision for this strategic plan. Therefore, the goal of the new role responsibilities is to advance the scope of practice for all the Nurse Clinicians through the appropriate and focused use of resources.
Broader Issues When looked at from an organization perspective, changing the responsibilities of the Nurse Clinicians may seem simple, however it is a huge change to the workflow of all staff in the VC. With over 500 professional staff, this change will require a period of adjustment and will take some time until fully understood and utilized by everyone.
Summary
Using data and input from stakeholders, strategic planning allows an organization to address unmet needs and further its mission and vision and serve community.