Program Planning Strategy Example
DQ1
Find a program (provide a link to the program) which was developed to provide health promotion and education to a specific population. Evaluate this program on its ability to identify with the specific population, on its implementation of effective intervention methods, and on its program planning strategy. This evaluation will be very broad in scope and not as in-depth as your research assignment. Review three peers’ postings, access the program links, and compare your assessment to theirs? What additional insights do you have?Program Planning Strategy Example
DQ2
Find a media publication with a health message. Share the link. What population is this publication targeting and how do you know? Do you think it is effective or not? Why?
You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.
Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.Program Planning Strategy Example
Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.Program Planning Strategy Example
The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.
Strategic planning in health care organizations involves outlining the actionable steps needed to reach specific goals. While there are different strategy types and levels, the purpose of all strategies is to bring an organization’s actions into alignment with its stated mission or values. Today, health care providers require more patient-eccentric, value-based approaches, whereas many of their current systems follow older, more traditional strategy models, according to Becker’s Hospital Review.
Increasingly, organizations are having to re calibrate their health care strategies to suit current market trends and changing approaches to patient care. Any professional looking to better understand the inner workings of health care institutions needs to know the different types of strategies used in health care, along with their importance for an organization’s success.Program Planning Strategy Example
The Importance of Strategic Planning
As noted in a report published in the Journal of Oncology Practice, “You may not be able to control the future, but strategic planning can create a direction for your practice and maximize your options for influencing your environment.” Strategic planning in health care organizations entails taking proactive steps toward a goal, not just addressing immediate problems as they arise. Health care strategy is crucial to an organization’s future success by providing the framework for making day-to-day choices in alignment with its objectives.
Levels of Health Care Strategy
The American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) explains that health care strategies vary in type (prospective or emergent) and organizational level (corporate, business, or functional).
Strategy Types
No matter their size or mission, most organizations employ some form of strategy to make progress towards their long-term goals. There are two main strategy types that organizations employ: prospective and emergent.Program Planning Strategy Example
Prospective Strategy
The majority of large health care organizations develop thorough plans to prepare for future issues that may affect their facilities and the health care field at large. These providers must focus on creating strategies that anticipate potential needs for additional resources, such as capital and personnel. This type of long-term planning is known as prospective strategy. Prospective strategies should also allow for flexibility in case unforeseen developments occur in the health care sector. For example, if providers develop a prospective strategy based on an expected nursing shortage in the years ahead, and that shortage is less severe than anticipated, a flexible strategy would include a plan for reallocating resources to other areas.Program Planning Strategy Example
Emergent Strategy
Emergent strategies involve a retrospective analysis of events to make better decisions going forward. Developments such as the implementation of new health care policy, swings in prescription drug prices, and outbreaks of epidemic diseases can cause health care market fluctuations that require providers to continually experiment and adapt. Organizations that rely on emergent strategies must be extremely flexible to be able to re-evaluate internal strategies and quickly re calibrate to better suit current market trends. Many providers analyze competitors’ strategies and implement tactics that seem to be working for other leaders in the field.
Strategy Levels within Organizations
In addition to prospective and emergent strategy approaches, there are also different strategy levels within organizations. Organizational strategies are often subdivided into corporate, business, and functional levels.Program Planning Strategy Example
Corporate-Level Strategy
This level of strategy often involves a board of directors, executive leaders, and stakeholders. As the top tier of the decision-making process, the corporate level oversees strategy for the entire organization, with a focus on defining mission and big-picture goals, such as fund allocation and business deals.
Business-Level Strategy
This strategy level prioritizes specific product lines. Business-level strategy focuses on projects in development, and managers have the authority to develop strategies based on the needs of their directives. Managers translate the directions and intent of those at the corporate level into actionable strategies for individual projects and employees.Program Planning Strategy Example
Functional-Level Strategy
The third tier in an organization’s strategic approach is the functional level, which supports the corporate and business levels. The focus at this level is tied to the end products or services the company provides. Functional-level strategy integrates research, marketing, production, and distribution to better connect products and services with the company’s client base.
Managers involved in developing strategies at every level must consider how their plans will affect individuals throughout the organization. For example, a strategy aimed at increasing health care services during a facility’s expansion should consider the additional hours current staff members may need to work before new professionals can be hired. Similarly, if administrators plan to divert more resources to a specific department in a health care facility, the strategy needs to account for how decreases in resources will impact other departments. Ideally, information should cascade from corporate down to the functional level, with the final product meeting all goals and driving business success.Program Planning Strategy Example
Developing Strategies with Advanced Education
Strategic planning in health care organizations helps medical institutions operate successfully with respect to business objectives and optimal standards of patient care. Professionals looking to gain a better understanding of health care strategies to help analyze, create, and implement them may need advanced education beyond a bachelor’s degree.
Heath care administrators or executives must have a comprehensive understanding of health care stratagems to effectively manage an entire facility, clinic, or department. A graduate degree, such as Regis College’s Master of Science in Health Administration, will help professionals add new skills into their already-existing foundation of experience, which can enable them to integrate strategy systems in the workplace.Program Planning Strategy Example
Strategy Implementation and Career Growth
Earning a Master of Science in Health Administration can enhance a professional’s working knowledge of health care systems, and it may also aid in career advancement. Medical facilities often seek out candidates with master’s degrees, as that level of education signifies that the candidate possesses advanced knowledge and applied experience.
Demand for strategic leadership roles is also on the rise. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects health care administrator jobs to grow by 20 percent between 2016 and 2026, which is much faster than average. That equates to an additional 72,100 open positions.
A Master of Science in Health Administration may be the perfect fit for professionals looking to elevate their understanding of health care system strategies while also expanding their career opportunities.Program Planning Strategy Example