Houston Hospitals Strategic Planning Process
Strategic planning is the process of defining an organization’s vision for the future, and identifying the goals and objectives that the organization will run by. A strategic plan involves identifying the organization’s direction, making decisions, and allocating resources to achieve its strategic goals.
For effective strategic planning, an organization ensures a planning team and key stakeholders have been involved in the process, the mission, vision, and values are articulated, and the external and internal environment is assessed before the strategic plan is developed (Clarke, 2019). This paper focuses on the process of strategic planning. It will specifically discuss the process of preparation, stakeholder engagement, the mission, vision, and the values of Houston Hospital.
Getting Ready for Success
The success of a strategic planning process begins with the organization believing that the approach will work and that the strategic planning approach is the best for the organization to achieve its goal. Houston hospital’s board of directors and the top management have come to a consensus that the organization needs a strategic plan.
Therefore, the strategic process began by selecting a team to conduct the strategic planning process. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected from the stakeholders, giving a better insight into the planning process and forming a firm foundation. An external consultant was considered to be in the planning team.
Organizational History and Profile
Houston hospital is a faith-based non-profit healthcare institution based in Houston, Texas. It was founded in 2006 by the Methodist Church of Houston to provide the community with quality healthcare services. Being in operation for almost a decade and a half, it has developed from a 15-bed institution to a 60-bed top-down unit hospital.
It has 75 healthcare providers and assistants in its six constituent departments. The institution, on average, receives 30-100 patients daily in both the inpatient and outpatient departments. Houston hospital primarily offers pediatric care, psychiatric care, oncology, Maternal and child healthcare, dental care, and surgical services.
Stakeholder Engagement
Stakeholder engagement is the process of involving the relevant stakeholders in initiatives to achieve accepted outcomes. Engaging stakeholders in the strategic planning process enhances the organization to identify the stakeholders’ concerns, perceptions, needs, and expectations (Kaur and Lodhia, 2018). Internal and external stakeholders should both be engaged in the strategic planning process.
The internal stakeholders in the planning process include the directors, the board members, heads of departments, the nurse manager, the non-medical staff, and other care providers. Their input was considered in participatory interactions with one another and the planning team. The planning team considered data collected from the internal stakeholders during the process. Some of them were also included in the planning committee. Their expectations were managed after that, and their needs were included in the strategic plan.
The external stakeholders in the strategic planning process include the federal and state government, the Texas Board of Nursing, the healthcare policy legislators, and other hospitals in the state and the community. Houston hospital considered the requirements and regulations of running the hospital.
The external stakeholders are involved in strategic planning to inform the planning reality and distinguish it from perception. For instance, external stakeholder engagement helped the team understand the operating environment through their perspectives of what the institution requires for success.
Mission Statement
According to Alegre et al. (2018), a mission statement is a written declaration that communicates the purpose of an organization. It is a primary measure of proving that an organization can achieve its goals and objectives. Houston Hospital’s mission statement is to provide quality and affordable care to all health populations in the community with compassion and the patient at heart.
As evident in the mission statement, Houston hospital exists to inspire healthy populations in the community. The mission statement furthermore establishes that the institution will achieve it by providing affordable, quality care. It also affirms that its primary concern is the patient.
Vision Statement
Houston Hospital’s vision statement is toward providing quality and affordable patient-centered care to all health populations in the community. Houston Hospital’s vision statement emphasizes the importance of patient-centered care in healthcare. It has enhanced the transformation of the care-providing approach into the patient-centered approach, thus improving patient outcomes. More so, the vision statement has enabled the institution to set goals that impact the health population’s accessibility and affordability of care.
Core Values
The values of an organization are the guiding concepts, beliefs, and principles that govern how the members of the institution behave. Houston Hospital’s core values include compassion, integrity, quality, leadership, and ethical practices. Care providers at Houston Hospital are directed by ethics, compassion, quality, and integrity. They are also required to display leadership skills in their work. Ethical considerations are also regarded highly at Houston Hospital.
Conclusion
A strategic plan is a documented direction of an organization. Strategic planning is crucial for the success of healthcare institutions. It enhances goals and objectives achievement while pointing out the underlying contradictions. The planning process mandates an initial planning process, as discussed above. The strategic planning process entails the development of a clear vision, mission, and core values to guide the institution. To succeed in strategic planning, the planning team should ensure the involvement of internal and external key stakeholders.
References
Alegre, I., Berbegal-Mirabent, J., Guerrero, A., & Mas-Machuca, M. (2018). The real mission of the mission statement: A systematic Review of the Literature. Journal of Management & Organization, 24(04), 456–473. https://doi.org/10.1017/jmo.2017.82
Clarke, C. (2019). Strategic planning in healthcare. In Textbook of medical administration and leadership (pp. 31-46). Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5454-9_3
Kaur, A., & Lodhia, S. (2018). Stakeholder engagement in sustainability accounting and reporting. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 31(1), 338–368. https://doi.org/10.1108/aaaj-12-2014-1901