BostonChildren Hospital
Lecturer’sname
Submissiondate
Bostonchildren Hospital
Chapter5: Summary, Recommendations, and Conclusion
SectionI: Summary
Evidently, has all over the years enjoyed prolongeddominance in the healthcare sector. The research noted that thesuccess of the private medical facility is due to the hospital`sability to utilize its strengths and opportunities. However, with theweaknesses and threats posed by other competitors such as Partner’sHealthcare System Inc and Shriners Hospitals for Children, thehealthcare facility is likely to experience significant losses,decreased market share and inconsistent competitive ability.
Strengths
Asit was previously established, ’s strengthsdue to its proper design, organizational planning as well as itsefficient and competent leadership. To illustrate, the company’stop executive team has put sufficient measures in place to ensurethat the recruitment process is done in a fair and transparent mannerin a bid to select the most suitable candidates. Also, the employeescome from diverse cultural backgrounds. That is essential infostering unity and enhancing motivation. Similarly, the staffmembers share different skills and knowledge subsequently improvingtheir efficiency in handling patients. Additionally, the hospital hasautomated its services by incorporating modern types of equipmentsuch as genomics, informatics, neurology and vascular biology (BostonChildren Hospital. (2016).Besides, the medical facility has a strongbrand identity that is well known across the globe, and it chargeslower prices for the services offered compared to its competitors.Moreover, the company offers a wide variety of commendatory services,for instance, multi-faith chaplaincy which seeks to address people’sfaith and spiritual aspects.
Weaknesses
Conversely,Boston Children’s Hospital has various flaws which have adverselyaffected its operation. For example, issues of racial discriminationwithin the medical facility have been on the rise where preference isgiven to white kids from wealthy families as opposed to black andLatino children from middle and low income earning homes. Equally,the hospital is facing several lawsuits for violation of civil rightsand medical malpractices. Lastly, employees are overworked (BostonChildren Hospital. 2016).
Opportunities
Dueto the strong brand name, Boston Children’s Hospital has attractedpatients from all parts of the globe. As a result, the company’sfinancial performance has considerably improved, and that hasincreased enabled the medical facility to compete favorably withother hospitals such as Shriners Hospitals for Children which offersimilar services.
Threats
Despitethe good performance and continued dominance in the healthcaresector, Boston Children’s Hospital has also experienced variousthreats, for instance, the hard economic times has compelled mostpeople to seek services from more affordable medical facilities. Thathas substantially affected its revenue. Also, there is increasedcompetition from other healthcare centers. Equally, governmentintervention on minimum wages rates will be an added expense to thehospital as well as increased mortality rates which have compelledthe hospital to provide specialized services to the senior citizens(BostonChildren Hospital, 2016).
SectionII: Recommendations
ForBoston Children’s Hospital to maximize its profits, minimize itscosts, improve its efficiency and competitive ability, it isessential for the top management team to utilize its strengths andopportunities to gain a higher competitive advantage compared toother healthcare facilities. Also, it should comprehensively addressthe threats and weaknesses as brought out in the followingdiscussion.
Emphasizing the importance of medical ethics and provide informed consent
Inthis case, it is vital for the medical facility to increase theamount of funds allocated towards employee training on the importanceof observing high levels of work ethics, professionalism andcompetence when they are executing their day to day duties. Here, thephysicians should be enlightened on the significance of prioritizingtheir communication with patients (Ferrand, et al 2016). To implementthat, healthcare practitioners should listen carefully to thepatients, try as much as possible not to dismiss or appear todownplay their concerns. Similarly, they ought to set realisticexpectations and provide clear answers to the patients. That willcreate a good rapport between healthcare professionals and theirpatients, decrease the likelihood of medical errors hence minimizingthe risk of lawsuits that Boston Children’s Hospital is currentlyfacing.
Further,Ferrand et al (2016), argues that it is vital for the medics toprovide informed consent to the patients before performing anyprocedures such as surgery. Therefore, to reduce lawsuits filedagainst the hospital due to medical malpractices and violation ofcivil rights, the practitioners should always advise patients on therisks, benefits and alternatives available depending on the servicesprovided. That will result in increased patient satisfaction thusreducing their possibility of filing a complaint because of medicalerrors or any form of mishandling.
Regularly update its policies
BostonChildren’s Hospital should allocate a substantial amount of fundstowards creating a special department that will be mandated with therole of ensuring that the adopted policies are consistent with thefirm’s goals and objectives (Kompany,Luis & Motacki, 2016).For instance, the medical should review existing policies andintroduce more stringent measures on medical carelessness, patientmishandling or any form of behaviour that is against the setstandards. Also, the hospital should prioritize employeesatisfaction. In this case, they should assess and compared theamount of workload available with the number of staff. After that,the human resource department can be in a better position to decideon whether the medical facility should hire new staff members. Itwill also determine whether the cost of recruiting skilled personnelwon’t overstretch the hospital’s resources (Ferrandet al.2016).Thatwill address the issue of employees working for long hours or evenover the weekends and it should be done on a regular basis. Employeesshould be involved and informed to avoid any form of resentment.
Employee motivation
Thegovernment intervention on minimum wages, as well as the hardeconomic times, is an added expense to the healthcare facility.However, Boston Children’s Hospital can address such pressures byintroducing measures such as rewarding the best employees throughsalary increment, reducing medical expenses for their familieswhenever they visit the facility and job promotions (Kompanyet al. 2016).That will inspire other workers to work extra harder so that they canenjoy such benefits. As a result, the output of employees improve,the company will get more profits which will be used to meet theminimum wage requirement set out by the government. The processshould be facilitated and implemented the soonest time possiblebecause employees form the backbone of the company`s excellentperformance. Employee motivation is crucial in minimizing industrialstrikes or absconding duties due to low pay (Ferrandet al. 2016).
Keeping pace with technological innovations
Justlike any industry where competition is an issue that should beconsidered, Boston Children’s Hospital faces a similar challengefrom its close competitors such as Partner’s Healthcare System Incand Shriners Hospitals for Children. It is essential for the hospitalto improve its budgetary allocation towards research and innovation.That will entail introducing more types of equipment to provide hearttransplant, radiography and chemotherapy services. Innovations shouldbe done more regularly because technology keeps on changing due toglobalization(Kompany et al. 2016).
SectionIII: Conclusion
Significance of competition in an industry
Understandably,competition is an essential aspect of any industry. That is becauseit results in increased research, innovation, improved services andcustomer service satisfaction. Therefore, with the stiff competitionfrom other hospitals, Boston Children’s Hospital will be compelledto facilitate its operations by keeping pace with technologicalinnovations and ensuring that it facilitates its operations.
Reasons as to why I believe Boston Children’s Hospital will adopt my recommendation
Firstly,the hospital has a flexible form of leadership that is ready toembrace changes provided that they are consistent with the goals andobjectives that have been put in place. Also, investing in researchfor better services such as heart transplant is a viable idea. Moatmedical facilities do not offer such services because of the costsinvolved. Therefore, through innovation and proper allocation ofresources, the hospital will satisfy patient needs subsequentlygaining competitive advantage.
Employeesatisfaction through job promotion, salary increment and medicalincentives for the families is also practical because they are thepeople to steer the hospital towards achieving its goals. Regularassessment and review of the policies are worth to be consideredbecause it will allow updated guidelines and procedures to beimplemented. Lastly, emphasizing on the importance of medical ethicsand provision of informed consent is feasible since it will minimizelawsuits, improve the reputation of the medical facility and reduceexpenses incurred in those cases.
References
BostonChildren Hospital. (2016). BostonChildren`s Hospital Reviews.Glassdoor.Retrieved 7
November2016, fromhttps://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Boston-Children-s-Hospital-Reviews-E18645.htm
Ferrand,Y. B., Siemens, J., Weathers, D., Fredendall, L. D., yunsik, C.,pirrallo, R. G., & Bitner, M. (2016). Patient Satisfaction WithHealthcare Services: A Critical Review. QualityManagement Journal,23(4),6-22.
Kompany,L., Luis, K., Manganaro, J., & Motacki, K. (2016). Items ofInterest. Children`s Specialized Hospital and Get Well Network™Collaborate to Improve Patient Education and Outcomes Using anInnovative Approach. PediatricNursing,42(2),95-99.