Purpose of Report
The current paper presents an executive summary as a part of the strategic analysis of Nor’easter Medical Center – a 75-bed non-profit hospital in Maine serving several counties. This hospital provides emergency, inpatient, primary, specialty, diagnostic, and ambulatory services as well as surgical services (Nor’easter Medical Center Hospital, 2024). While MHA FPX 5010 Assessment 1 organization has been both nationally and state-wide accredited for patient safety and outcomes, treating COVID-19 introduced challenges such as a rise in patient demand, losses in revenue, and staffing burnout among the clinical staff. The Nor’easter Medical Center is focused on the ongoing enhancement of the health of community populations, which is based on organizational values such as compassion, integrity, safety, and accountability. It is now up to the hospital to counter the aforementioned challenges as it seeks to remain sustainable and continue assisting its communities.
MHA FPX 5010 Assessment 1 Medical Center
The report will discuss the Workforce from the 2023 AHA Environmental Scan which is an important strategic concern of Nor’easter Medical Center (American Hospital Association, 2022). The COVID-19 crisis has negatively impacted the clinical staff since some of these workers are burnt out, and the turnover is high. These challenges affect the capacity of the hospital to deliver quality treatment and care and protect the patients. Workforce management is critical to the hospital’s strategic planning since the health of its employees determines patients’ quality and improved organizational effectiveness. The report will bring out the key recommendations on how Nor’easter Medical Center needs to reconstruct the clinical staff and design a structure for staff loyalty and workforce wellness to allow for the production of quality health care to the communities served by this hospital.
Strategic Planning Importance
Strategic planning is critical to the success of Nor’easter Medical Center because it helps the organization to direct its work toward the accomplishment of its goals and objectives that are consistent with the mission, vision, and core values of the center. Through the use of strategic planning, the hospital can manage the current problems, such as major workforce challenges, including burnout and staffing deficits, while advancing towards achieving the long-term goals of enhancing the quality of health care delivery and, consequently, patient satisfaction (Pract, 2019). Strategic planning provides a procedure for handling the problems of healthcare organizations in the post-pandemic period, with the number of patients and costs growing, combined with economic pressures. For Nor’easter Medical Center, this planning is paramount as it facilitates its ability to continue offering requisite, quality, and timely care services to its communities.
MHA FPX 5010 Assessment 1 Organization Goal and Objectives
To me, strategic planning is significant as it helps me to make substantial and effective contributions to the achievement of organizational goals and objectives and, at the same time, works as a tool for fostering personal skill development. This way, it is easier to stay committed and focused on the delivery of the organizational mission and vision of the hospital since it is all for the overall achievement of the greater goal, which is the enhancement of community health (Pract, 2019). The strategic process makes me think critically, analyze situations, and find ways to arrive at good conclusions regarding the organization’s affairs. For instance, being aware of the strategic initiatives on workforce management at the organization helps me understand that the tasks that I am doing are very important in helping the organization achieve its agenda of improving the health of its Workforce and, by extension, the patient.
Indeed, MHA FPX 5010 Assessment 1 strategic planning is mostly applicable when it comes to workforce issues, as discussed in the AHA Environmental Scan. In the case of Nor’easter Medical Center, it becomes a strategic issue to establish ways of reducing staff burnout, increasing staff retention, and strengthening the Workforce. Addressing the needs of the hospital stakeholders will only be beneficial in the sense that the hospital will maintain a healthy and skilled workforce, which translates to delivering quality patient care (Dennis, 2019). For example, providing access to counseling services, covering the costs of professional development, and designing more favorable working conditions can contribute to the prevention of burnout and the development of a healthy workforce. It also helps organizations to better meet their goals and needs, thus still being able to serve their communities effectively.
Strategic Core Concepts
Core concepts help evaluate the strategic plan to identify Vision, Mission, and Goals as applicable to an organization with Strategies and Implementation Tactics. Strategic planning involves key ideas such as the vision or the future directions of the organization, the mission which outlines the target customers, and objectives or goals to measure the achievement (Kennedy et al., 2020). A strategy deals with the process of searching for the opportunities or threats that relate to the strengths and weaknesses of an organization, on the other hand, an approach represents the general directions that may be employed to achieve the strategy. Tactics mean the measures employed to achieve the strategy in the contemporary organizational business environment.
Strategic Core Concepts for Nor’easter Medical Center
For Nor’easter Medical Center, these strategic core concepts are crucial to managing the workforce issues that surfaced in the 2023 AHA Environmental Scan. With this vision of leading in healthcare excellence, the hospital requires support and motivation to ensure a motivated workforce (Dennis, 2019). Indeed, the care of the community’s health will not be pushed to the next level if there isn’t a reliable clinical staff that can deliver quality services (Nor’easter Medical Center Hospital, 2024). The hospital aims to serve its goals, such as patient satisfaction and safety, which are non-negotiable since they rely on competent staff who are not burnt out. Regarding the strategies, it is necessary for Nor’easter to prioritize strengthening the company’s staff, investing in its employees’ physical and psychological health, and increasing patient satisfaction (Locock et al., 2020). MHA FPX 5010 Assessment 1 policies may include progressive measures such as work flexibility, mental health care, and skills enhancement. Last but not least, strategies such as organizing and offering wellness programs besides offering competitive salaries can foster talent acquisition and retention in the organization.
Examples
Examples of how it is possible for Nor’easter Medical Center to implement its strategic core concepts are the launch of programs such as flexible staffing to address workforce burnout. It could also spend on developmental courses for its employees with the aim of promoting the advancement and retention of such human resources (Locock et al., 2020). Also, increasing staff remuneration and other incentives would improve employee morale and retention, and consequently, increase patient satisfaction and turnover. Increased use of technology in managing clerical tasks would free up the clinical employees, enabling them to attend to patients and enhance the probability of the hospital achieving its long-term objectives of constant health improvements.
Next Steps
As highlighted in this paper, Nor’easter Medical Center needs to devise a strategy for approaching talent management problems and integrating them with the organization’s strategic direction. One of the strategic directional examples is focusing on workforce development and its reinforcement through the offering of competitive compensation packages, allowing employees to stay healthy, protected, and happy in the workplace. Studies indicate that by encouraging better work-life adjustment, providing mental health support, and ensuring career development programs, burnout and turnover can be considerably limited, and this is crucial for improving patient care (Gragnano et al., 2020). Furthermore, increasing effective means of recruitment, like collaborations with educational establishments and providing relocation opportunities, can help avoid the lack of staff. When the Nor’easter Medical Center succeeds in implementing the principles of a resilient workforce, the organization will be better placed to address staff internals that impact patients while keeping the company competitive within the healthcare industry.
MHA FPX 5010 Assessment 1 Executive Summary
Another important process line refers to the effective use of technology to support the administration and, therefore, avoid becoming a burden for the clinical workers. Applying integrated healthcare technologies like EHR and telemedicine will improve care provision and system performance. There is evidence that in addition to improving the level of patient satisfaction, telemedicine also reduces the workload of clinicians by allowing for alternative and more flexible methods of providing care (Ezeamii et al., 2024). Moreover, the use of telemedicine may also increase patients’ access to healthcare for those who live in different areas, which is the main mission of the organization to provide healthcare for its communities. These innovations can help the Nor’easter Medical Center achieve better efficiencies with its Workforce while enhancing the experiences of its patients.
To conduct a comprehensive analysis of the strategies and their effectiveness for improvement, Nor’easter Medical Center could use a SWOT analysis method, which would help to define the internal and external strengths and weaknesses of the organization. A study highlighted that SWOT analysis can give a clear indication as to areas that may need improvement and also areas that can be developed for growth (Dunne, 2023). For instance, as seen in the table below, performing a SWOT analysis would enable Nor’easter to pursue its strength of having a talented human resource while also working to overcome some of its weaknesses, such as employee demoralization and the problem of staffing. MHA FPX 5010 Assessment 1 Talent could be sourced from firms such as partnerships with educational institutions, while possible risks like high turnover rates and aging employees could be addressed through talent management and skill development.
Table 01
SWOT Analysis
| Category | Description |
| Strengths | • Existing skilled Workforce. • Strong training programs and continuous learning opportunities |
| Weaknesses | • High levels of staff burnout. • Recruitment challenges. • Difficulty retaining top talent. |
| Opportunities | • Forming partnerships with educational institutions to access new talent. • Flexible work arrangements to increase staff satisfaction. |
| Threats | • High turnover rates. • Aging Workforce leading to potential skill gaps. • Risk of losing institutional knowledge. |
Closing Remarks
The primary issues of staffing and the multiple aspects of workforce management, such as workforce turnover, workforce burnout, and workforce acquisition, affect Nor’easter Medical Center and its ability to deliver quality care. One of the key management concerns that require attention regarding future strategic planning is the expansion of the workforce development program and the integration of telemedicine and other technologies required to support the future growth of the hospital. Through the use of assessments like SWOT, it becomes easier for Nor’easter to understand its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. When it comes to employee well-being, better recruitment, and innovation, the organization will be able to tackle all these challenges because it needs to remain a viable healthcare organization in its community.
References
American Hospital Association. (2022). 2022 environmental scan | AHA. Www.aha.org. https://www.aha.org/environmentalscan
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Dunne, K. (2023). SWOT Analysis. Mindtools. https://www.mindtools.com/amtbj63/swot-analysis
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Locock, L., Graham, C., King, J., Parkin, S., Chisholm, A., Montgomery, C., Gibbons, E., Ainley, E., Bostock, J., Gager, M., Churchill, N., Dopson, S., Greenhalgh, T., Martin, A., Powell, J., Sizmur, S., & Ziebland, S. (2020). Improving staff experience. In www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. NIHR Journals Library. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK554752/
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Pract, J. O. (2019). Strategic planning: Why it makes a difference, and how to do it. Journal of Oncology Practice, 5(3), 139–143. ncbi. https://doi.org/10.1200/jop.0936501