Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay

Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay

Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay

Strategic planning is an area not often covered in educational programs for entry level nursing. In addition, clinical staff nurses may not be involved in strategic planning. Magnet hospital status, which requires nursing to be a part of shared governance, is changing the role of nursing in strategic planning. As a BSN prepared nurse, it is a skill you need to develop.

Synthesize the concepts behind strategic planning.

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Include the following in your assignment:

· Read Theories of Strategic Planning and Chapter 7. At the end of the chapter, an application of the concepts of strategic planning is embedded in three case studies. Each case study illustrates how nurse leaders may synthesize the concepts behind strategic planning.

· Compare and contrast the studies.

· Consider which one would be more effective and why. Which illustrates best practices in strategic planning?

· Consider a strategic need at your current or former place of employment. Which theories discussed in the article and case studies could best be used to meet that strategic need?

· Submit the information from the previous four bullet points in a 3-5 page APA formatted paper (Title page and references are not to be included in the page count.)

· Include at least two scholarly references in addition to the textbook and at least two citations in the paper. Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay

Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay Case Studies:

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THREE CASE STUDIES DEMONSTRATING HOW SP IS APPLIED BY PRACTICING NURSES TO SOLVE PROBLEMS IN THEIR SPECIALTY AREAS IN NURSING

CASE STUDY #1:

Where Are We? Where Do We Want to Be? How Do We Get There?

Julie A. Serstad, MSN, RN

The challenges of a new position are almost always exciting if you view the glass half full, as I do. I usually sit back for a while, maybe 36 months, to listen and learn about the agency, structure, employees, informal communication, etc.

My arrival at my most recent position as the director of Health Services for a large local health department was no different. It’s what we all do when we meet a new client, go to a new neighborhood, and perform an assessment. The nursing process becomes a part of all that we do.

One of my first observations was that there was no specific strategic plan in place. I felt that the staff had a strong commitment to the work being done, but no direction or vision. I approached my supervisor with a plan and a request for an outside facilitator to conduct a formal strategic planning work shop for us. I also requested funding to hold the session at an off-site facility. I was given the go-ahead.

It is so vital to have the support and encouragement of management for a strategic plan to be successful. This includes upper and middle management.

Many of the direct line staff were very skeptical and hesitant about participate ing, so meeting with supervisors before informing the staff was very important.

shared information on the value of strategic planning with the supervisors.

I This was to be the first “all staff” strategic planning meeting that most of the staff had ever experienced. I also required all staff to attend.

Our session objectives included:

1. Review of Health Services progress and achievements in the last 12 months.
2. Explore and discuss important factors in the external and internal oper ating environment to establish a realistic context for discussion and planning.
3. Describe and commit to a proactive and realistic future scenario for departments within Health Services and establish a 3-year strategic framework to support that vision.

The first two objectives are basically an assessment of the organization. We identified a framework, based on a scale from 1 to 10 (10 being the most posi tive), and listed the characteristics of a program at the 1-3 level, 4-6 level, 7-8 level, and 9-10 level. Then we explored our current operating environment.

Participants identified the trends, issues, and influences as pertinent factors in our current environment.

We identified a strategic framework by developing our mission state ment, our vision statement, and then strategic goals for the organization as a whole. We realized the importance of recognizing each division’s individual strategies and so separated into those divisions and listed services and success indicators. Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay

We came to consensus on our overall strategic goals, and the three separate areas did the same for their individual strategic goals for the next 12-36 months. We made a commitment to revisit the organizational goals and strategies at least yearly, and the individual area goals on a quarterly basis.

The involvement and participation of the entire team is critical to buy-in and to the success of a strategic plan. This highlights the importance of choosing your facilitator very carefully. The plan is not a static process, but rather a living, viable series of actions that will be revised and have new solutions over time. The value of embracing a comprehensive plan cannot be overemphasized because it truly sets the stage for excellence in practice and assurance of pro tection and sustainability of the public’s health.

 

CASE STUDY #2:

Why Strategic Planning: Meeting Challenges in Frontier Health Care

Peggy Stevens, BSN, RN

Public health nursing in a frontier community poses many challenges. The community itself provides challenges, with isolation, lack of services, and a depressed economy. Limited financial, facility, and equipment resources are challenging enough, but added to these dilemmas and barriers to care is the shortage in the public health nurse (PHN) workforce; not only is staffing a problem, but funding programs and having competitive salaries is a tremen dous problem as well.

Creating a clear set of strategies based on thoughtful planning is the only way to figure out how to provide care in resource-challenged settings. So, one has to be creative. First, I think that one has to determine the community’s needs-what services are most needed-and align those needs with available funding sources.

Finding funding sources to help offset costs is where strategic planning is a really helpful tool. Frontier communities have very few financial resources.

Small counties must depend on outside funding sources just to pay basic wages and provide basic services (like immunizations, Women Infant and Children (WIC), and epidemiology). Clear implementation strategies are neces sary lest grants drive care.

Developing budgets, finding funding sources, managing a workforce, being a “jack-of-all-trades,” and implementing quality measures is a tough job when one or two people-part time-have to make everything work.

Strategic planning helps us to keep on track and make the best use of fund ing, programs, and people while trying to meet the many healthcare needs of our community.

 

CASE STUDY #3:

Strategic Planning in Acute Care Settings Carrie Stensrud, BSN, RN, CCRN-CSC

The Bitterroot Chapter is a small, local affiliation of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses. Despite the fact that we are the only connection to our national organization in our region, we failed to have active participation from the critical care nurses in our immediate and sur rounding areas. Subsequently, we were challenged by a lack of direction and purpose. We struggled with recruiting and maintaining active chapter meme bers. In order to address these issues, we voted to hire a professional consultant to streamline our efforts, revive the floundering chapter, and develop a strategic plan.

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The chapter reviewed strategic plans of similar organizations on a national and regional level. We reviewed the mission, vision, and values of our national organization and brainstormed how we wanted our chapter to look in the future. We met with our consultant, and board members were given the task of identifying the reasons for planning and designing a process to meet the needs of the chapter. We assessed and evaluated our chapter by reviewing our history and prior accomplishments, articulating our previous and current strategies, identifying our internal and external stakeholders, and reviewing the effectiveness of our current programs. After summarizing the information collected, it was time to make sense of the data and agree upon our priorities. Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay

Our strategic plan is heavily weighted on recruitment and retention, bu also includes plans to increase the vendor support at our annual Critical Care Symposium, launch a significant community service project, and establish a scholarship fund. Our plan is meant to be a work in progress, a reference docu ment that clearly states our goals but can also be amended by the needs of ou chapter. We focused on making our goals attainable in a 3-5 year timeline and did not try to exceed realistic expectations. By having our goals so specific and reasonable, we are set up for success and find ourselves already celebrating those successes.

We now have mission and vision statements to guide our work. We have clearly defined short- and long-term goals regarding recruitment and reten tion, growth strategies, future programs, and benefits to our members. Our strategic planning process has given us a sense of direction and a renewed energy for providing leadership and educational opportunities to our col leagues and a level of excellence in critical care to our patients and their families. Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. A strategic review also may be referred to as what?
2. What are the three main components of a SR?
3. SR is comparative to what part of the nursing process?
4. How do values and vision impact SR?

6. In Susan Heathfield’s version, what does the acronym SMART stand for?
7. List the three crucial roles in the SR process.

REFERENCES

Altman, L. (2000, March 24). Study links bacteria, long nails and baby deaths. The New York Times. Retrieved April 29, 2009, from http://www.nytimes.com/2000/03/24/us/ study-links-bacteria-long-nails-and-baby-deaths.html American Nurses Association (ANA). (2008). The ANA’s bill of rights for registered nurses. Silver Spring, MD: Author. Applications of Strategic Planning Assignment Essay