Strategic Planning (Evaluation)
Monitoring and evaluation are fundamental steps of strategic planning that need equal or even greater attention just like the other stages of this process. Such is the case given that evaluation enables the strategic plan developers to monitor the progress of the new program’s institutionalization and its alignment to the strategic goals and objectives (Stanhope, & Lancaster, 2014). In essence, this discussion centers on the same since it seeks to establish how an evaluation of a strategic plan intended for Harborview Medical Center will roll out. Central to the analysis is the identification of specific metrics that will help monitor the success of the program, and the types of controls used. By so doing, a new understanding of the invaluable role played by strategic plan evaluation is inevitable.
Quality Metrics
Primarily, various metrics will come in handy when evaluating this program and are worth mention. They include acute care length of stay (LOS), discharge by noon, readmission rates and patient satisfaction with discharge process. LOS will measure the duration of a single inpatient hospitalization episode of an individual. LOS will be attainable by calculation, which involves dividing patient days by the total admissions. As for the discharges by noon metric, they will be obtainable from the Admission/ Discharge/Transfer/ Registration (ADT/REG) system. The 30-day all-cause readmission rates will also be achievable from the ADT/REG system retrospectively. Lastly, the ascertainment of the levels of patient satisfaction with the discharge process will be attainable via the patients’ report about the process after its completion.
Types of Controls
The controls used for this strategic plan are mainly operational and organizational controls. Precisely, operational control mainly focuses on daily inputs and serves to regulate the day-to-day output relative to schedules, specifications, and cost (Huber, 2014). In this case, the acute care LOS, discharge by noon, and readmission rates quality metrics are all befitting of the operational form of control. Such is the case given that they relate to the organizational schedules, specifications, and cost.
On the other hand, the organizational control focuses on reviewing and evaluating the nature and arrangement of the elements in the system. Its direction originates from the goals and strategic plans of an organization (Roussel, 2013). That said, all the selected metrics for success measurement of the strategic plan are consistent with the strategic goal of reducing discharges and hospital readmissions. As such, the organizational control will also come in handy when dealing with these metrics.
Conclusion
In closure, this paper focused on demonstrating how strategic plan developers for the new electronic discharge communication strategy intend to evaluate the implementation of the program in Harborview Medical Center. Indeed, the discussion has achieved this objective without fail. An implication drawn from the same is the need of having outcome metrics that will guide the evaluation of an organizational strategic plan. In the absence of such metrics, the pioneers of the strategic plan are more than likely to lose track of the organizational progress towards achieving strategic goals and objectives. As such, going into the future, such a consideration is of the essence if indeed the success of the strategic plan is a priority.
References
Huber, D. (2014). Leadership and Nursing Care Management. Saint Louis: Elsevier Health Sciences.
Stanhope, M., & Lancaster, J. (2014). Foundations of nursing in the community: Community-oriented practice.St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier/Mosby.
Roussel, L. (2013). Management and leadership for nurse administrators. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
