BHA-FPX4104 Assessment 2-Strategic Analysis and Operational Considerations

Assessment 2-Strategic Analysis and Operational Considerations

In this paper, I shall analyze the influence and significance of competition in the healthcare industry regarding strategic planning. I will also identify and analyze healthcare organizations’ strategic frameworks. Then, I will examine a healthcare organization’s internal, general, and external environments and how they influence its operations. Finally, I will consider the consequences of the organization’s future if strategic frameworks are not used.

Part 1: Understanding the Environment

Competition in the healthcare industry has been a topic of discussion for a long while. The perspectives of health activists and specialists have aroused some worries in the healthcare system. According to experts, competition is inappropriate within a service industry whose objective is to give restorative treatment to individuals in need of assistance or who are unwell. On the flip side, proponents feel that competition is indeed the solution to lowering inflated healthcare prices and insurance rates and enhancing patient service alternatives within the sector (Pauly, 2019). External healthcare competition initiatives may impact the mission of  St. Anthony Medical Center; hence, strategic planning ought to incorporate careful thoughts on planning for and counteracting these attempts while evaluating organizational objectives.

As the healthcare sector continues to develop and the environment of care shifts to private medical and outpatient surgery from hospital-based practices, facilities such as St. Anthony Medical Center should be equipped before growing competition disrupts revenue and reduces the patient population. Each financial year, stakeholders should be aware of the continual demand for health facilities to deliver optimum service and implement new initiatives while maintaining within budget (Haas et al., 2018).

To execute strategic planning effectively, external and internal variables must be examined and planned for. When doing strategic planning, executives within the healthcare industry can consider using competitive awareness strategies. Although competition decreases healthcare costs, enhances patient service quality, and promotes health technologies, the drawbacks remain unclear (Ginter et al., 2018). However, strategic planning should maintain a balance between the internal components of an institution and the external environment in which it operates (Bryson & George, 2020) An equilibrium between these viewpoints is not enough to suffice. Interference from outside competitors is a crucial external aspect that must be included in the strategy plan (Bryson & George, 2020).

Ginter et al. (2018) emphasize that external competitors should be closely monitored, including outpatient surgical facilities, clinics, and individuals who use these facilities instead of hospitals. For instance, small discrete surgical clinics in the metropolitan region have lower operational expenses than hospitals; as a result, they attract hospitals’ less sophisticated, but often more profitable, surgery situations. In addition, to counteract these attempts, it is prudent to include competitive bids in strategic planning to be a backup if an unforeseen event badly impacts a hospital (Ginter et al., 2018).

Part 2: Organizational Analysis

Strategic planning highlights the actions an organization will take to attain its objectives. Strategic planning is facilitated by a strategic framework (Wright, 2018). Yet, strategic frameworks incorporate the hospital’s vision, mission, and objectives, which are the fundamentals of strategic planning. Adopted properly, a strategic plan will identify the organization’s challenges, facilitate the creation of initiatives, and include a roadmap to track the development of the applied solutions. A strategic framework includes many planning strategies that contribute to the prosperity of an organization. Balanced Scorecard Framework and Porter’s Five Forces model are two key frameworks utilized within the healthcare industry to ensure the success of a business (Wright, 2018).

Balance Scorecard Framework

The Balance Scorecard is a commonly used strategic model that serves as a strategic planning and systems management method. A balanced scorecard offers a structure for an organization to articulate its approach consistently. The balanced scorecard model seeks to evaluate the variables that create worth for a healthcare institution and how the created worth directly affects a hospital’s capacity to thrive (Wright, 2018). The benefits of the Balance scorecard model are that it gives a visual rep