Boston Children’s Hospital has been reported to be a comprehensive 395-bed health care center which caters to pediatric care . It is specifically located at 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts. Likewise, the hospital has been recognized as a teaching hospital for Harvard Medical School. According to Rizzo & Kim (2005), a SWOT analysis is “a commonly employed framework in the business world for analyzing the factors that influence a company’s competitive position in the marketplace with an eye to the future” (p. 119). The current discourse hereby aims to present an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) surrounding the present health care environment of Boston Children’s Hospital.
Strengths: Boston Children’s Hospital’s strengths could be evaluated in terms of possessing exemplary health care professionals who embody the mission of providing the highest quality of health care within their field of endeavor. It is able to achieve this mission through exemplary leadership, highly competent and qualified personnel and medical practitioners, as well as through rigorously continuous training, research, and provision of education to the “next generation of leaders in child health” (Boston Children's Hospital:Vision, Mission and Values, 2011, p. 1). It boasts of having been accorded with accolades and awards ranging from being the top in “Best Children's Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report(as well as) in Heart & Heart Surgery, Neurology & Neurosurgery, and Kidney Disorders” .
Weaknesses: The only weakness noted is the constant pressure for various stakeholders to always be on their best guard to work towards sustaining the leadership position. This poses challenges towards working constantly at strategies of cost minimization and maximization of resources. Likewise, being perceived as a top health care institution could project an image of high price in the delivery of health care which restricts access to health care from marginalized sectors of society.
Opportunities: There are vast opportunities in the delivery of health care services using technological advancement and applications such as video integration and telerehabilitation . Likewise, other applications for electronic medical reporting could continually transform delivery and access to health care through the use of telecommunications gadgets which continue to be updated and conform to the needs of a more sophisticated generation.
Threats: Increased competition from other health care institutions which aim to get a larger market share from Boston’s current and potential clientele. There are also apparent threats in conformity to ethical standards as well as the impact of using more advanced technology which could potentially endanger the employment of some identified health care practitioners .
References
Boston Children's Hospital. (2011). About Us. Retrieved from childrenshospital.org: http://childrenshospital.org/about/Site1394/mainpageS1394P0.html
Rizzo, A., & Kim, G. (2005). A SWOT Analysis of the Field of Virtual Reality Rehabilitation and Therapy. Presence, Vol. 14, No. 2, 119-146.
