Question

Write a 175- to 265-word response to the following:

Review the following scenario:

ABC Hospital is a small, privately-owned community hospital. It has been struggling to survive financially, as reimbursement rates have declined and consumers are being drawn to the larger state-of-the-art hospital facilities in urban areas that are perceived to have better quality. ABC Hospital was built in 1960 and has been operating in the same manner for many decades. The hospital meets legal and regulatory requirements but has not kept pace with some of the newer technologies and patient conveniences becoming more prevalent in the health care industry.

Discuss the following with the class, providing specific examples to support your answers:

• What strategies can the organization take to survive, improve its performance, and compete with other hospitals over the next 5 years?
• What are some advantages or disadvantages of these strategies?

Answer 1

ABC Hospital has been unable to make critical network and equipment upgrades due to a lack of funding but when a hospital is forced to operate with outdated technology it can lead to communication failure and result in costly medical errors (Morris, 2009). If the current operational methods are not working then change is needed to improve the quality of the hospital. ABC hospital needs to change their manner of operation and redesign the hospital to be effective in the long run (McLaughlin &Kaluzny, 2006). The hospital could change from a privately owned hospital to a public hospital or even a non-profit hospital. The hospital must be updated from a 1960’s look to a more modern facility that is easily accessible for patients. The hospitals technology must be updated to reduce risks to patients. Some new technology could include electronic medical records and telemedicine, and undated medical equipment, which will reduce medical risks and improve the quality of health care (Morris, 2009). Employing well trained, qualified, and quality health professionals will improve the quality of care and improve the hospitals reputation. When updates happen an open house could bring future patients to admire the new looks and advantages to the hospital. Advantages of updating the hospitals technology and the look of the hospital will offer more to the public and bring more patients to the hospital thereby improving the hospitals financial situation. Disadvantages are the investing money to change technology and upgrades to the hospital building can be expensive and risky. The risk would be improving the hospital and its image could fail to bring in more patients.

References:

McLaughlin, C., &Kaluzny, A. [Eds.]. (2006). Continuous quality improvement in health care (3rd ed). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett. Retrieved March 08, 2011

Morris, J. (2009). Leveraging Technology to Improve Healthcare. Retrieved March 08, 2011, from http://i.zdnet.com/whitepapers/Qwest_CriticalConnectionsLeveragingTechnologytoImproveHealthcare.pdf

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