In today\’s fast-paced and global community, most organizations are faced with constant change. Research contemporary organizations that are currently responding to a significant change within the industry, such as disruptive technology; state, government, or industry regulations; environmental constraints; judicial or legislative rulings; etc.
Choose one organization from your research that has recently responded to major change, or is currently responding to change. Write a paper (1,250-1,500 words) discussing how well the organization is responding to the change dynamics. Include the following:
Describe the organization and the change to which it is responding.
Discuss the degree to which the change has been disruptive and how the organization has responded to the dynamics created by this change.
Evaluate the strategies the organization used in its change plan and determine the level of success the organization experienced with the strategies.
Determine the effect the change had on stakeholders, and to what degree stakeholders have resisted. Assess how well stakeholder resistance was addressed.
Evaluate the overall implications the change had on interdepartmental collaboration.
In your opinion, how well did the leaders of the organization respond and prepare for the change? What worked and what did not work with the strategies they implemented?
What modifications would you suggest the leaders of the organization make in order to better address the change dynamics? What additional strategies would you recommend to assist the organization through this change?
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
Contemporary Organization Evaluation
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliations
Contemporary Organization Evaluation
Innovative technologies in health care are constantly causing disruptions in the workflow within the organizations that are implementing them. According to the American Hospital Association (2021), disruptive innovation in healthcare has brought about significant changes in the way healthcare professionals interact with their patients and in the manner in which health care is delivered. During a change initiative, leaders of healthcare organizations usually experience numerous challenges as they strive to ensure that their facilities remain operational and focused (Figueroa et al., 2019). The purpose of this assignment is to provide a detailed evaluation of Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center (SPHCC), a contemporary organization that is currently responding to the change dynamics caused by disruptive technology. The evaluation will also provide suggestions regarding what leaders of the organization should do to effectively address the change dynamics.
Organizational Description and the Change
SPHCC is a grade A tertiary hospital located in Jinshan District of Shanghai, China. The facility provides healthcare services to the community. It is also a research center and an educational institution. SPHCC is well known in the region as a facility that offers public health emergencies. It extensively integrates technology into its operations which enhances the effectiveness of the healthcare delivery, education, and research processes (Shanghai Medical College Fudan University, n.d.).
The disruptive change to which SPHCC is currently responding is related to the integration of wearable sensors by patients to curb the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from patients to caregivers. The facility recently adopted a new technology involving the use of VivaLNK continuous temperature wearable sensors (Pennic, 2020). The technology is an application of the internet of things (IoT) to collect patients’ data. The sensors are used with patients who have been placed in quarantine to limit their interactions with caregivers. When planted on patients, the temperature sensors are able to send data electronically from a patient to a dashboard that is monitored remotely at a station. From the data, the observer is able to have a view of patients without caregivers having to visit them physically to check their temperatures (Pennic, 2020). The technology helps to combat the spread of COVID-19 by limiting contact between patients and their caregivers.
The Degree to Which the Change has Been Disruptive and How the Organization Has Responded
The adoption of VivaLNK continuous temperature wearable sensors has been disruptive for SPHCC by requiring caregivers to possess the technical skills needed to effectively interact with the dashboard and interpret the displayed data. According to Channa et al. (2021), the adoption of wearable devices normally causes interruptions in the workflow as employees must be ready to change roles and learn the skills required to gather patients’ data from the technologies. Similarly, the integration of VivaLNK continuous temperature wearable sensors requires nurses to possess a high level of knowledge and skills to ensure successful implementation. In a survey conducted by Chen and Thio (2021), the researchers discovered that healthcare providers across healthcare facilities have reported general technical skills challenges in relation to the adoption of digital tools implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19. Healthcare providers at SPHCC have reported similar challenges and leaders of the organization must address them to ensure continuity of workflow. The organization has responded to the dynamics created by the change by training caregivers on how to use wearable sensors to monitor patients remotely (Channa et al., 2021; Pennic, 2020). The training has captured issues related to how to observe the dashboard and interpret the displayed data.
Strategies Used by the Organization and the Level of Success
SPHCC has utilized a number of strategies to ensure the success of its change plan. One of these strategies is communication. Prior to the change, leaders of the organization informed both internal and external stakeholders about the gap in practice and the planned change (Pennic, 2020). According to Nilsen et al. (2020), effective communication of a planned change is one of the facilitators of successful reforms in healthcare organizations. The other strategy that the organization has used is engaging in collaborative decision-making with information technology professionals, health informaticists, and caregivers. Additionally, proper planning and budgeting have helped the facility to get to where it is now with the change (Pennic, 2020).
The strategies that have been used by SPHCC have generated a high level of success for the organization. For example, as reported by Pennic (2020), since SPHCC integrated the wearable temperature sensors, the facility has designed special wards for quarantine and treatment of COVID-19 patients. The technology allows real-time and continuous monitoring of patients. This does not only limit cross-infection but also ensures effective management of COVID-19 patients.
Effects of the Change on Stakeholders
The change that is taking place at SPHCC has had an effect on stakeholders. For instance, stakeholders have been compelled to change their plan of activities due to the ongoing change. They have to hold frequent meetings to discuss the change process. This never used to happen before the change implementation process started. Frequent meetings, both formal and informal, have been found to contribute to success during innovative change because they allow managers to relay important information related to the change process (Ryann et al., 2017). It is anticipated that the number of meetings held per month will reduce once the technology is fully integrated.
The organization has experienced minimal resistance from stakeholders. During the initial stages of the change, some nurses did not support it claiming that it was going to result in job losses owing to the fact that the technology was going to reduce the number of nurses the organization will require to handle patients. To address stakeholder resistance, the change leaders assured the employees of job security and explained their planned training to equip caregivers with the necessary technical skills to use the technology to remotely monitor COVID-19 patients (Tappen et al., 2017). The communication strategy was effective as it improved stakeholders’ support.
Overall Implications of the Change on Interdepartmental Collaboration
The adoption of VivaLNK continuous temperature wearable sensors by SPHCC had great implications for interdepartmental collaboration. Precisely, the change increased collaboration among departments due to the need for joint decision-making (Pennic, 2020). Effective care of COVID-19 patients is enhanced when various departments in the organizations work together (Chen & Thio, 2021). Therefore, departmental leaders have to understand how the new technology is affecting their operations. Besides, for these departments to provide relevant services to COVID-19 patients in the facility, they need patient data obtained from the wearable sensors (Channa et al., 2021). The increased interdepartmental collaboration is one of the factors that are enhancing the success of the entire change process.
Response by Leaders
I feel that the leaders of the organization have responded and prepared well for the change. The reason is that the strategies that they implemented have helped to steer the change forward. For example, leaders of the organization prepared a clear plan and budget at the beginning of the change. These helped them to remain focused throughout the change process (Tappen et al., 2017). Additionally, informing both internal and external stakeholders about the gap in practice and the planned change was a very good approach because it enabled stakeholders to prepare psychologically for the change. Moreover, the leaders did a good thing to communicate with the employees to address resistance (Tappen et al., 2017). It is because of the effectiveness of the strategies employed by the leaders of the organization that the change has progressed positively to where it is today.
Suggestions and Recommendations
Despite the positive progress made with the change, SPHCC can still take action to make things work better. One modification that the leaders can consider in order to better address the change dynamics is to involve patients in the change to understand how their perceptions regarding the technology. An additional strategy that the leaders should implement is to exercise transparency in the whole process by not being afraid to inform stakeholders about what has worked and what has not in relation to the original plan (Tappen et al., 2017).
Conclusion
Leaders of contemporary health organizations should possess skills and knowledge to effectively manage change dynamics. This evaluation has revealed how Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center (SPHCC), a contemporary health organization in Shanghai, China, that is currently responding to the change dynamics caused by disruptive technology. The organization is currently integrating VivaLNK continuous temperature wearable sensors into its healthcare delivery process to curb the transmission of COVID-19 from patients to caregivers. Although leaders of the organization have responded and prepared well for the change, they can exercise transparency and involve patients in the change process to better address the change dynamics going forward.
References
American Hospital Association. (2021). Disruptive innovation: Opportunities and challenges. https://www.aha.org/disruptive-innovation-opportunities-and-challenges
Channa, A., Popescu, N., Skibinska, J., & Burget, R. (2021). The rise of wearable devices during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 21(17), 5787. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21175787
Chen, A. T., & Thio, K. W. (2021). Exploring the drivers and barriers to uptake for digital contact tracing. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 4(1), 100212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2021.100212
Figueroa, C.A., Harrison, R., Chauhan, A., & Meyer, L. (2019). Priorities and challenges for health leadership and workforce management globally: a rapid review. BMC Health Services Research, 19, 239. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-019-4080-7
Nilsen, P., Seing, I., Ericsson, C., Birken, S., & Schildmeijer, K. (2020). Characteristics of successful changes in health care organizations: an interview study with physicians, registered nurses and assistant nurses. BMC Health Services Research, 20, 147. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-020-4999-8.
Pennic, F. (2020). Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center uses wearable sensors to combat spread of coronavirus in China. https://hitconsultant.net/2020/01/31/shanghai-public-health-clinical-wearable-sensors-coronavirus-in-china/
Ryann, E. L., Emily, L. R., Katelyn, G. E., Jeffrey, C. A., Martin, C. P., & Lukas, V. C. (2017). What roles do middle managers play in implementation of innovative practices? Health Care Management Review, 42(1), 14-27. doi: 10.1097/HMR.0000000000000090
Shanghai Medical College Fudan University. (n.d.). Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center. http://shmc.fudan.edu.cn/eng/show/PublicHealth
Tappen, R. M., Wolf, D. G., Rahemi, Z., Engstrom, G., Rojido, C., Shutes, J. M., & Ouslander, J. G. (2017). Barriers and facilitators to implementing a change initiative in long-term care using the INTERACT® Quality Improvement Program. The Health Care Manager, 36(3), 219–230. https://doi.org/10.1097/HCM.0000000000000168