Free Custom «Clinical Management» Essay Paper

Executive Summary

This paper intends to provide specific strategic intents designed that are in line with Indian Rivers Mental Health Center’s vision/mission. The health institution intends to deliver mental health services to the community of West Alabama through prevention and treatment services. The SWOT analysis of Indian Rivers Mental Health Center reveals that it has dedicated medical professionals and technology utilization. Among the weaknesses of Indian Rivers Mental Health Center includes its lack of an internal support structure that can effectively ensures services do not stop in the event of a critical emergency. Its strengths and opportunities include its focus on mental health services domain, which has less players in the industry. In line with the attainment of these goals, Indian Rivers Mental Health Center’s strategic intents entail: helping the hospital management team in making informed and effective decisions; enhancing health service provision to above standard level; improving health care delivery to the most vulnerable members in the community; advancing technology in the institution’s health care setting; developing an effective feedback system for the facility;  and finally, diversifying the funding options to improve sustainability of services.

The strategic intents are achieved through carefully selected objectives that are based on the SMART criterion. Some of the SMART objectives include: ensuring that at least 80% of short term and long term initiatives recommended by the hospital management team are adopted within a stipulated time frame; developing a decision making protocol to improve collaboration with other relevant stakeholders in the industry; improve adoption of industry specific standards such as those set by  National Mental Health Association, American Psychiatric Nurses Association, and National Commission on Correctional Health Care; adopt global mental health care initiatives; perform a needs assessment survey on the local community to profile vulnerable groups; conduct on available modern technology and their cost effectiveness to Indian Mental Health Center; design an effective feedback system to be used with the hospital setting; and finally redesign the current budgetary provisions of Indian Rivers Mental Health Center to eliminate irrelevant items and adopt a cost minimization process.

Mission and Vision Statements

Vision statement: To deliver an array of behavioral health services to West Alabama society. It will provide outpatient, inpatient as well as residential care as the main service to patients with substance abuse, mental illness as well as intellectual limitations to Pickens, Bibb, and Tuscaloosa counties. Its services will be consumer driven, accessible, and sophisticated while depicting a clear and obvious advantage to the society. It will continue to build up through organic development as well as acquisition of interconnected market segments.

Mission statement: their mission statement is to prevent as well as provide medication for behavioral health disorders. It offers a full range of services to the society at large. Their goal is offering accessible services which promote recovery of all the individuals. They are accountable to their consumers, families, advocates, their prayers as well as to the society at large.

Summary of Research, Analysis, and Conclusions

SWOT Analysis

The SWOT analysis for the Indian Rivers Mental Health Center reveals important facts regarding the functionality of its management policy framework. This was achieved by modeling the parameters that would be used to assess the internal and environmental factors affecting the organization in attaining its goals and objectives. First, on account of strength, Indian Rivers Mental Health Centre has a professionally groomed team that is well endowed with previous experience. The health centre also has necessary equipment and an integrated referral system to provide a seamless link in the achieving continuity of healthcare. Secondly, on account of weaknesses, Indian Rivers Mental Health Center lacks an internal support structure that can effectively ensures services do not stop in the event of a critical emergency that is past the hospital’s capability. Despite, its enhanced referral system, this is specially intended to address special cases. Thirdly, on account of opportunities, Indian Rivers Mental Health Center has a unique business prospect given its focus on a special niche in the medical industry, mental health, which has less number of dedicated medical institutions in the vast region. As a result, it has the chance of expansion if it desires to expand its business prospects. Finally, on account of threats, being a private entity, the organization has less formidable partnerships with public mental health institutions.

Internal Assets Inventory

Indian Rivers Mental Health Center has several core competencies in its operational framework. First, the health center has technological enhanced its operations with special focus given to youth mentoring projects run with other organizations. Secondly, the health center has focused on increasing its revenue sources through establishment of dedicated cash reserves, diversification of funding sources, addition of twenty medication units, observation units, and meals apartments. Additionally, it has focused on improving partnerships with community agencies that assist the medical center to improve funding opportunities.

Indian Rivers Mental Health Center has a service expansion program that is focuses on adding non-residential community help and implementation of clinical treatment teams. It has developed a public awareness agency. This has been achieved through partnerships with other healthcare providers. It has an active role in the local Community Mental Health Task Force. Indian Rivers MHC has an enhanced collaboration with Federal Qualified Health Centers (FQHC). It makes maximum use of community publications in order to raise levels of public awareness as well promote reduction of inappropriate Mental Illness stigma in the community.

Staff acquisition and retention are competencies which ought to be developed. This will improve Performance Appraisal System, continuity in improving salaries as well as profits as funding permits. The employees should be surveyed regarding supervision as well as retention. The organization ought to address the residential care gap. The residential care involves individuals who have been discharged from state mental institution. Even though the aim of the program is to ensure that clients acquire latest skill, as well as advance to higher levels of independence. The residential care is not fully established since there is inadequate housing as well as poor transport which in most cases exposes their clients to harsh condition and makes them vulnerable to criminalization.

 Several factors promote innovation efforts. The director and other leaders take seriously new idea or opinion from the employees. They are also fast at implementing innovations; for instance, they will soon be implementing telemedicine which is a recent development in the medical field (Gottlieb, 2006). Advancement in technology which entails embracing telemedicine is a big step which the organization has taken so far.

Challenges &Opportunities

Indian Rivers Mental Health Center currently has problem of insufficient funds to competently implement its development projects. Majority of the developmental projects involve the construction of buildings which to be used to expand the present patient facilities. Due to this missing link, majority of patients do not receive adequate health car, which implies that patients are exposed to external conditions that affect their healing process.  Indian Rivers Mental Health Center can source for alternative funding options that can enable it to build adequate housing so that patients would be able to recover quickly. Furthermore, they would not be bothering the society at large by decreasing the current pressure on the social services department, which has overstretched its resources. Another opportunity available to Indian Rivers Mental Health Center is the less number of private health centers offering mental health care services within its geographical area.

            Inadequate funds can greatly impact on an organization normal business planning period. This can also impact on any organizations planning period since the organization will not be in a position to plan adequately for its operations. This can be solved by ensuring that an organization assesses its economic strength. The common trend is for organizations to seek external sources of funds, for instance, bank loans. While doing this the lack of collateral and provision of strict repayment rules can put the organization in jeopardy. Secondly occurrences greatly affect how an organization operates. Emergencies take different forms, for example, some employees may quit a job, calamities can also affect how an organization plans, high-patients turnout can also affect how an organization operate since they will strain the resources available (Gottlieb, 2006).  Indian Rivers Mental Health Center can design tailor made services that identify a unique that is most vulnerable in the community. After this, the management team of Indian Rivers Mental Health Center can source for financial grants available that are specifically intended for community oriented services. This way the organization can improve its chances of securing external funding options that are not in the form of loan.

 

Strategic Intents 

Strategic Intent Statements

• Help the hospital management team in making informed and effective decisions

The sole responsibility of making major deliberations in Indian Rivers Mental Health Center is its management board. In this regard, to streamline service provision in the health center, the management team provides the direct link because it holds the key to the organizational resources and other strategic links within/outside the organization. The management team needs to be provided with new guidelines that will be incorporated into the organization’s operation framework. These guidelines will help it to make better decisions by focusing on the most critical factors affecting the organization.

• Enhance health service provision to above standard level

Currently, going by the survey output parameters for Indian Rivers Mental Health Center’s, it comes out clearly that in as much as significant effort has been made to maintain the standard of health care provision, more still needs to be done. Since Indian Rivers Mental Health Centers targets to be an industry leader in its niche, the organization needs to raise its bar at the local level, which will then be extended at the expansive regional level. Moreover, given the challenges that the medical center is experiencing, it implies that the organization cannot overstretch its capacity due to the logistical limitations presented. In this regard, focusing on raising the standards above standard level will increase the institution’s competitiveness.

• Improve health care delivery to the most vulnerable members in the community

The services provided by Indian Rivers Mental Health Center are fall under the special services domain because of its target group of patients. Ordinarily, these services are provided by governmental health agencies, which fall short of capacity, consequently compromising the accompanied quality. As a private enterprise, meeting these needs depends on a number of factors: the community’s input, especially from the families affected and the society’s concerns on mental health. Thus, this suggests that the vulnerability level of mental health patients is higher than other groups, which rises from their special needs. Indian Rivers Mental Health Center needs to provide for their special needs satisfactorily.

• Advance technology in the institution’s health care setting

The use of technology has brought positive improvement in other settings. New technology options are available for use in the mental health sector, specifically to improve therapy. Anthony, Nagel, and Goss (2010) observed that the provision of quality therapeutic options guided by technology promises to improve the client’s participation, representing the client’s interest, and mirroring their strengths and ideas. Therefore, Indian Rivers Mental Health Center needs to improve its therapeutic options by specifically focusing on the needs of its clients. These services will enable it to improve health care provision by addressing the existing gaps.

• Develop an effective feedback system for the facility

In any organizational setting it is important to know the outcome of the services being provided. This provides the organization with a comprehensive list of areas that need improvement and those having a positive impact. Presently, Indian Rivers Mental Health Center lacks a comprehensive feedback system to monitor service provision. It is also important to note that the feedback system will provide valuable information for conducting monitoring and evaluation of the hospital services. Areas that can be targeted include staff, equipment utilization, medical appointments, response to therapy, utilization of funds allocated for specific activities, and achievement of projected milestones. According to Lloyd, King, and Deane (2008) performance appraisal is critical when it comes to assessing performance, and when it is effectively performed all the stakeholders who participated in the process stand to benefit. In the case of Indian Rivers Mental Health Center, it will be possible to assess individual contribution, monitor medical mistakes, and improve carefulness among members of its professional team. This will enable the organization to tackle most of the mental cases issues easily (Indian River, 2011).

• Diversify funding options to improve sustainability of services

The key to success in any organizational setting is the availability of sufficient funds to implement the projected milestones. Presently, Indian Rivers Mental Health faces funding challenges in attaining its goals and initiatives. Thus, there is need for the organization to expand its financing options by going past the traditional options of health care available. Normally these funds are derived from the governmental kitty; however, there are limitations in terms of access since more focus is given to urgent items. According to Welfel and Ingersoll (2003) mental health practitioners have options when it comes to managing and choosing financial options. In this regard, Indian Rivers Mental Health Center has great capability of pursuing other reliable alternatives that will ensure sustainability of its services.

SMART Objectives for Strategic Intents 

According to SMART requirements, the objectives of the strategic intents should be Specific, Measurable, Attainable or Achievable, Relevant, and Time bound. In this regard, the following objectives were developed satisfying SMART requirements:

• Help the hospital management team in making informed and effective decision

1.                      i.            Ensure that at least 80% of short term initiatives recommended by the hospital management team are adopted within 1 month of their communication to staff members.
2.                    ii.            Ensure that at least 80% of long term initiatives recommended by the hospital management team are adopted within a 1/3 of the stipulated time frame.
3.                   iii.            Develop a decision making protocol within the first month that effectively ensures adequate collaboration with other relevant stakeholders in the industry so that the management can properly take into account other contextual factors affecting the entire industry.

• Enhance health service provision to above standard level

1.                      i.            The mental health provision standards should meet the standards and guidelines recommended by the National Mental Health Association within 3 months of passing the new recommendations.
2.                    ii.            Ensure that all medical personnel serving within the Rivers Mental Health Center are trained and certified by their affiliate professional bodies such as the American Psychiatric Nurses Association with 6 months of passing the recommendations.
3.                   iii.            Ensure that the mental health services and treatment protocols satisfy legal and ethical provisions of psychiatric care as recommended by the National Commission on Correctional Health Care, within 6 months of passing the recommendations.

• Improve health care delivery to the most vulnerable members in the community

1.                                  i.            Attain the global health initiatives championed by the World Health Organization that focus  on addressing existing gaps mental health care by meeting needs of at least 80% of mental health care patients in the local area within 6 months of adopting new guidelines.
2.                                ii.            Conduct a needs assessment survey in the following month on the surrounding community to appropriately profile the critical factors that need more attention and most affected individuals.
3.                               iii.            Implement 100% of recommendations derived from the results of the needs assessment in the health delivery process of Indian Rivers Mental Health Center such that more focus is given to the urgent areas by its practitioners.
4.                              iv.            Carry out a campaign locally and through the hospital’s website within the first 2 months to sensitize members of the surrounding community so that they can report mental health issues affecting their families. This will assist the hospital in developing a needs-based system that takes into account the community’s concern while at the same time encouraging public participation.

• Advance technology in the institution’s health care setting

1.                                  i.            Conduct a study in the following month on modern technology used in other hospital settings (regardless of geographical boundaries), their efficacy in attaining treatment/monitoring objectives, and their cost effectiveness to Indian Mental Health Center.
2.                                ii.            Implement the study recommendations within 1 week of the study’s conclusion by choosing/ identifying the best technological options, considering available cheaper alternatives, and their maintenance costs with regard to Indian Rivers Mental Health Center.

• Develop an effective feedback system for the facility

1.                                  i.            Design a new feedback process within the 2 months that will be used to monitor the level of utilization of dedicated financial resources in the organization by the institution’s management.
2.                                ii.            Appoint an external auditor within the first 2 months to conduct a baseline survey on how Indian Rivers Mental Health has been using its financial resources in the past 1 year.
3.                               iii.            Design a new feedback system within the first 2 months that will be used to gather data on the standards of health practice among Indian River Mental Health Center’s mental health personnel.

• Diversify funding options to improve sustainability of services

1.                                  i.            Appoint a team within the first month to facilitate a baseline survey on other funding options available and how other private health institutions are acquiring non government funding sources. Survey results should be submitted after 3 months.
2.                                ii.            The financial department needs to redesign the current budget of Indian Rivers Mental Health Center within the first 3 months to eliminate items that are considered irrelevant and divert those funds to the most needed areas. However, while doing this care should be taken not to disrupt normal operations within the 3 months window period.