Environmental Analysis of Parkland Health & Hospital System
This paper conduct an environmental analysis of Parkland Health & Hospital System having in mind the importance of such analyses in guiding a healthcare organization’s strategic decisions. It not only sheds insights on opportunities, but barriers as well, both internal and external. With this information, strategies can be developed for successful improvement and positioning of a healthcare organization (Mitchell, 2013).
Key Structural Features Determining the Forces of Competition in Health Industry
In the health care industry, competing has an impact on several perspectives of relationships. In healthcare, it is theoretically proposed that the vertically integrated market structure in professional practice serves as the vehicle for intra-professional debate in the organization and for developing the needful provider-oriented care policy (Mitchell, 2013). This analysis suggests that key to the forces of competition in the industry is the special relationship between professionalism in healthcare service provision and professional regulation. Such regulation may simultaneously function as a limit to unfair competition and in fostering a well prized consumption for the clients in terms of professionalism and professional esteem (Finch, 2012).
The organized demand for health care services inherently tends to dampen competition in the industry. However, professionalism in itself is crucial in securing an organized care provider a state regulation, in which the care providers form the main decision-makers. Further it may influence the market behavior of the providers and consumers in several significant ways that may result in formation and maintenance of a leadership cartels in the local market. Therefore, pursuit of the political-economic theory of health care market formally affirms that professionalism is valued by established practitioners as the main factor that determines the influence in the industry (Finch, 2012).
Goals and Strategies of the Respective Competitive Forces
In a PESTanalysis,this paper evaluates the political, economic, social, and technological environment of the health industry in reference to the Parkland Hospital. As part of the healthcare industry, the hospital has equally undergone these factors, and they have, over the years of its service provision in Dallas, influencedits performance in the industry. As may be noted in the industry-specific analysis, some of these factors have benefited the facility, while others provide the institution several challenges that need to be addressed to survive the growing and unique competition in the industry. As a healthcare provider, therefore, the hospital needs to analyze these factors with the aim of improving on their current products and services(Finch, 2012).
Political Factors
These are external factors that are mainly ecological in terms of the legislation (future, current, and international), roles of the regulatory bodies, and the processes of government policies. It also includes the government term and any changes that legal activities may have on trading policies in terms of funding, access to grants, andinitiatives in the home market pressure. In the Parkland Hospital case, the passage of health laws such as the Centers for Medicare Services Act (2012) towards lowering the cost of care has increased the level of hospital utilization by the locals. This has significant impact on the availability of facilities to cater for the increased demand. Further, there has been an increase in activist lobbying that has impacted on the hospital operations based on the lobbying. For instance, there is an upsurge of special Interest groups lobbying for groups such as physicians, patient advocacy,hospital associations and nurse unions. In this regard, the hospital management is faced with the challenge of dealing with a stricter level of standards for an informed clique of consumers.
Economic Factors
This factor of industry competition is mainly concerned with the home economy in which the industry lies. Economy has an impact on other operations, both local and international. These operations may include general taxation that is specific to the health care product or services, in which seasonality issues affect market cycles of the industry factors. In other instances, the behaviors elicited affect market routes that in turn affect the distribution of customer and end-user drivers of the industry. Parkland is faced with the changes occasioned by the reduced reimbursement due to the requirements of the Centers for Medicare Services (CMS). For instance, implementation of the requirements led to a general reduction on as consumers demanded lowerpricing for the medical services. In order to increase capitation, the hospital is forced to consider other methods of increasing patient turnover, hence an increasedcompetition in the industry through competitive pricing. Clients are encouraged to pay for quality as the hospital operationalizes the patientsafety and riskreduction policy.
Social Factors
These factors include lifestyle trends of the catchment of the hospital. It is notable that the hospital mainly serves immigrants with a generally reserved cultural background. This has had an impact on the demographics as well as the attitudes andopinions of the consumer depending on how they view the law changes that affect their social brand. It is notable that even a simple action of introducing technology may have an impact on the consumer image that would compound into changes in their buying patterns and access to the services (Sutherland, 2013). In Dallas, there is a general culture shift towards transparency for patients involving integrating consumers in the care delivery and hospital operations. This has been majorly utilized in selling and marketing of the healthcare services as a product.
Technological Factors
Technologically, the industry is subjected to competing technology, in which research and developmentfunding is associated with dependent technology replacement (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2013). Solutions to the maturity of technologymanufacturing and capacity of information andcommunications are in the resulting consumer buyingmechanisms. In the industry, technology legislationinnovation and potential of technology access affect the competitive edge depending on costs of licensing, patents, intellectual property rights, and communications. The hospital has a burden of investing in innovation to become the early adopters of technologies in the industry. For instance, the trending Central eMR can be embraced to improve service delivery. However, this is affected by legislation andrequirements. Altogether, the industry has potential in establishing scalable technology solutions. This will technically reduce the current barriers to partner business, in which leaders can adopt change and provide the required technology support resources.
The Organization’s Directional Strategy
As a public health system in its immediate community in Dallas, Parkland is the bedrock of a healthy population. In this regard, it is a daily reminder to the hospital management to improve the servicesrendered to its patients. By the time of this analysis, Parkland was adding more community health care services in the neighborhoods (Hall, &Roussel,2016). To them, patient care is not just their job but their passion. As indicated in the Hospital’s website, their mandate is to avail medical aid and other hospital-based care to its majorly needy population in the hospital district. This is borne in the mission of dedication to the well-being of communities depending on their care. Parkland Hospital envisions through their actions, to define the understanding of the standards of excellence a public academic health system as currently rendered by the facility.
The Organization’s Positioning Approach
Positioning approach of Parkland service is in its excellence standards. With the goal of providing the best possible health care for their patients, patient-centered approaches are promoted through compassionate handling of patients, and skill development through teamwork. This is the goal behind creation of CIRCLES –behavioral standards guiding the actions and interactions at the Parkland. Some of the values that help in positioning the organization include show of Compassion for every patient individually. This enables provision of service empathetically, in love and with concern. Further, the institution emphasizes integrity among its staffs. They are expected to remain honest, trustworthy, and transparent in their internal and external relationships. At management and technical level, collaboration is an important constituent of achieving the company goals by working with patients and partners. These goals have necessitated investment in leadership training and placement(Hall, & Roussel, 2016).
Summary/ Conclusion
This analysis underscores the place of quality management in ensuring good competition among stakeholders in the industry. Overall, the immigrants in Dallas have limited access to health care compared to the natives. This is regardless of whether they are insured or not. Majority of the immigrants have reported very few or no office medical visits in all categories of medical coverage of the US population: the uninsured, privately insured, and the public insured individuals. The disparity jeopardizes the quest of safer communities as outlined in health quality improvement given that individuals mingle in the society. Incidents of preventable infections are most likely under such a disparity in health care provision. Although healthcare institutions are charged by legislation to offer these services to the poor immigrants, there is laxity by the staffs. Such attitude can only be linked to a possible cultural incompetence among staffs in handling the immigrants and maintaining a competitive edge over its immediate competitors in the state.
To facilitate the desired change in the cultural competence, the healthcare institution has opportunities in the sufficiency of supporting demand-driven factors in the region. Further, the diversity in the population served offers the nurses and other staffs to learn the immigrant language or to employ nurses with competency in immigrants’ languages. This notwithstanding, the health care institution needs to benchmark cultural competency to capture its ability in providing the needed knowledge of the needs of the immigrants, and the awareness and respect for the local cultural values, language, and ethnicity and practices (as a group or as individuals)
References
Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2013).Research methods in education.7th Ed. New York, NY: Routledge.
Finch, J. (2012). Managerial marketing. San Diego: Bridge point Education, Inc.
Hall, H.R., &Roussel, L.A. (2016).Evidence-based practice.Burlington: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Mitchell, G. (2013). Selecting the best theory to implement planned change.Belfast: Queen’s University press.
Sutherland, K. (2013). Applying Lewin’s change management theory to the implementation of bar-coded medication administration.Canadian Journal of Nursing Informatics.Editoral Board, 8(1&2).