Introduction
This paper addresses the major steps that Caring Angle Hospital can implement to realize its goals. Also, it recommends one strategy that the heath care provider can adopt to obtain a large market share. Finally, it examines value-added services will strengthen its value proposition.
Major steps for Caring Angle Hospital
Improve the quality of care
Improving the quality of care is important since it will prevent patients from hopping from hospital to another. Caring Angle Hospital can employ various strategies to enhance the quality of their services. The hospital administration should consider managing the process of care rather than focusing on controlling on the physicians. A major mistake that Caring Angle Hospital does is controlling the actions of nurses and instructing them how to handle patients. A good idea would be to encourage the clinicians to offer quality services that they think will help the patients to recover. Another approach is electronic data collecting and management (Procter and Woodburn, 2012). The hospital administration should encourage the healthcare workers to keep explicit records of the patients. Additionally, up to date data on emerging trends in health care provision should be provided to the doctors. These include new disease, virus, and development of the existing health issues. Sufficient data will ensure the hospital offers quality care to patients with new, contagious and existing health problems.
Hiring qualified medical staff can also help improve the quality of services in the hospital. Further, the hospital administration should offer training opportunities to the existing clinicians to ensure they get information on the evolving trends in the field of medicine. Moreover, the management should fire non-performing physicians and replace them with new, aggressive doctors. That way, the quality of services in the hospital will improve.
Add value to the organization
Caring Angle Hospital should first consider improving its infrastructure as a way of adding value to the organization. According to the case study, the waiting seats are not cozy, which makes patients feel uncomfortable. Thus, it should consider purchasing modern furniture including chairs and beds. That way, patients will be happy to seek services from the hospital. Also, the management should improve the status of the buildings since the quality of the space impacts the psychology of the patients. Most patients believe that they will get quality services in hospitals that have quality buildings.
Additionally, Caring Angle Hospital should improve the status of the private rooms. Patients are becoming sensitive to their overall well-being. Hospitals that have single private rooms record increased patients than those with multiple-occupancy. Birthing suites is another area that the hospital should improve when considering value-added services. The rooms should have all that the expectant mother requires before and after delivery. Well-furnished rooms also reduce the risk factors that may occur during birth. Further, Caring Angle Hospital should consider including modern technology in their dental services. Shim, Kim, Choi, and An, (2014) note that the adoption of Computer Tomography in Dental care in Korea has enormous benefits to the patients. Nutrition counseling should be part of the dental care so as to add value to the organization.
Improve employee morale
Enhancing the staff morale is essential in Caring Angel Hospital since it will improve productivity. The case study notes that the physicians are not smiling when talking to patients, which shows the extent of boredom among the employees. The administration should organize team-building activities. Events that bring the workers together can help to boost their morale. These include fun events, volunteer activities and group-based connections. Recognizing the staff achievements also contributes to boosting morale. Physicians who display the ability to care for terminally ill patients should receive recognition from the administration. Also, the hospital management should address issues such as poor performance and lack of cooperation. Importantly, motivated employees are always keen on improvement. Reassessing task alignment is also an essential factor in improving employee morale. Meyer, Clapham, and Lemke (2014) insist that when reassessing roles and duties, the hospital should focus on improving both the staff and organization satisfaction. The nurses and doctors will fee encouraged when allowed to contribute in their areas of expertise and interest. Setting team goals helps the staff to work towards achieving the objectives. The goals should be fun to motivate to motivate the team. Striving to achieve goals like ensuring high patient satisfaction score gives the doctors the morale and excitement to work hard.
Efficient organization chart
Caring Angle Hospital should consider the needs of the organization when developing an active organizational structure. The professionalism of the clinicians is also an essential factor to consider. Most importantly, hospitals require highly-trained and experienced administration to run efficiently. Due to high competition in the medical industry, the hospital should find leaders who can steer growth. The nurses and doctors should choose one member to head them in ensuring improved performance. Each department in the hospital should be led by a professional who understands its operation. This approach will ensure increased productivity of the organization.
Strong team environment
The case study notes that doctors work alone and conceal their findings. Thus, there it is necessary to create a strong team environment. First, the hospital should encourage the staff to have shared meals. That will help to improve collaboration among the employees. Also, the hospital management should organize seminars and workshops to train the physicians on the importance of teamwork. During the seminars, the facilitator can narrate instances when cooperation proved vital. These programs can help the staff to realize that they require each other for the success of the entire hospital. Additionally, the management can encourage the clinicians to discuss and consult each other when handling critical patients. That will prevent the doctors from concealing their findings. Also, it will make the doctors appreciate each other. The administration should also initiate challenges whereby the employees have to work together to achieve a particular target. This way, the employees will realize that it is simple to reach a goal when working in a team.
Develop hospital’s competitive edge
Caring Angle Hospital can utilize various techniques to create a competitive advantage. The physicians should focus on offering value services to the patients. Importantly, quality services improve the patient’s experience and satisfaction (Ching-Sheng, Su-Yueh, and Yi-Ting, 2013). Consequently, it is the patient experiences that keep them coming back to purchase more services. Also, a good experience promotes referrals and recommendations. Satisfied clients will refer their friends and family members to the hospital. Caring Angle Hospital should embrace technology to boost its position in the market. The use of social media, online advertising, and other technologies will help to create a competitive edge. Efficient record keeping and management is another way of creating a competitive advantage. The hospital will be able to compare revenue between different times which will help it to measure its position in the market. Hence, it shall determine ways to improve the aspects that are falling. Also, the hospital can determine the means to deal with competition from other healthcare providers.
Strategy that Caring Angle Hospital can employ to gain a large market share
Despite the current economic condition, I would recommend Caring Angle Hospital to make its services affordable in with the aim of expanding its market share.
Most people are in need of low-cost medical facilities due to the nature of their illnesses. Also, others are not financially stable, and they need affordable medical care. Further, patients like to seek care from clinics that offer high-quality, affordable services. Brezenski (2014), states that millions of Americans seek medical services due to the introduction of Affordable Care Act. Thus, Caring Angle Hospital will realize an increased market share if it lowers the costs of its medical services.
Value-added services for Caring Angle Hospital
The two value-added services that can strengthen its value proposition include telemedicine and membership programs.
Telemedicine is a revolution that is making health care provision simple. These are the two benefits of telemedicine. Brown Cooper (2015) states that telemedicine bridges the gap between the patient and health care provider. Patients can consult specialist online and decide when and where they want to seek medical attention. Also, telemedicine allows physicians to offer virtual assistant through video-conferencing. Hence, it can strengthen the position of the hospital on the market.
The membership program is one great way for hospitals to improve their proposition. These are the benefits of membership programs. First, it helps the hospital to gain and retain loyal clients. Also, most patients’ feel as if they are being treated specially by the virtue of being members of the particular hospital.
Conclusion
Caring Angel Hospital should focus on improving its infrastructure, bringing staff together through joint events, lowering the cost its services, and offering high-quality care if it wants to achieve its goals. Telemedicine and membership programs are the value-added services that will help the hospital to strengthen its proposition.
References
Brezenski, T. F. (2014). Interest Group Formation and Mental Health Care Consumers in the United States: The Effects of Stigma, Fiscal Policy, and the Affordable Care Act. Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 6(3), 39-52
Brown Cooper, S. (2015). Opinion Leaders’ Perspective of The Benefits And Barriers in Telemedicine. Quarterly Review Of Distance Education, 16(1), 25-54.
Ching-Sheng, C., Su-Yueh, C., & Yi-Ting, L. (2013). Service quality, trust, and patient satisfaction in interpersonal-based medical service encounters. BMC Health Services Research, 13(1), 1-11.
Meyer, C. K., Clapham, S. E., & Lemke, A. (2014). Strategic Planning At Unitytrust Hospital. Journal Of Business & Behavioral Sciences, 26(3), 112-126.
Procter, P., & Woodburn, I. (2012). Encouraging nurses to develop effective electronic documentation. Nursing Management - UK, 19(6), 22-24.
Shim, Y., Kim, A., Choi, J., & An, S. (2014). Use of three-dimensional computed tomography images in dental care of children and adolescents in Korea. Technology & Health Care, 22(3), 333-337.
