Change Initiative: Creating Vision

Sample Answer for Change Initiative: Creating Vision Included After Question

Assessment Description

In a written paper of 1,250-1,500 words, evaluate the current forces driving change in your field or industry. As a leader, or considering the role of a leader, assess your organization and evaluate how well it is responding to the forces, and identify where there is a need for change. Develop a vision to inspire this change. Include the following:

Describe your organization, include the organization’s mission, and identify the various stakeholders.
Identify the external and internal forces that drive organizational change in your field or industry. Explain the origin or reason for these internal or external driving forces. Explain how these forces directly affect the viability of your organization.
Choose one of the driving forces. Describe the specific issues this driving force creates, or will potentially create, for your organization or department.
Propose the steps needed for your organization or department to respond to this driving force.
Predict how employees at various levels in the organization will respond to your proposed change initiative.
Develop a vision for change. Describe how this vision correlates with the organization’s mission, and how you will present this vision to internal stakeholders.
Predict how you think your vision will assist internal stakeholders in supporting the change initiative. Identify potential considerations posed by stakeholders, and discuss how you will respond.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. A link to the LopesWrite technical support articles is located in Class Resources if you need assistance.

A Sample Answer For the Assignment: Change Initiative: Creating Vision

Title: Change Initiative: Creating Vision

Health organizations in the modern world operate in highly dynamic and complex environments. They have to embrace change and innovative interventions to ensure their sustained performance and competitiveness in their markets. Health organizations also have to understand the actual and potential needs of their consumers to provide appropriate services for their competitive edge. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore change in the organization that I work with as a nurse. The paper explores topics that include internal and external forces driving change, interventions that the organization can adopt to address the selected force, and vision for the organization.

Description of the Organization

I work with the VA Healthcare System. VA Healthcare System is an institution that was developed to address the care needs of the veterans. The healthcare system has 1293 health care facilities that include 171 VA Medical Centers and 1112 outpatient clinics. The VA Healthcare System provides a wide range of services to its stakeholders that include dermatology, vision care, audiology and speech pathology, dental, podiatry, and neurology care. It also provides services such as organ transplant as well as plastic surgeries. The mission of the VA Healthcare System is fulfill the promise of President Lincoln promise of caring for those who have borne the battle and suffered its effects by serving and honoring them as the Veterans of America. Values that include commitment, respect, advocacy, integrity and excellence drive the organization (Va.gov, n.d.). The stakeholders of the VA Healthcare System comprises mainly of the veterans and healthcare providers.

External and Internal Forces Driving Change

Internal and external factors drive change in the VA Healthcare System. Culture is the first internal factor that drives change in the organization. Culture refers to the manner in which organizational stakeholders that include healthcare providers act, decide, and respond to situations. It encompasses the values, beliefs and practices the provision of patient care in the organization. Enabling culture characterized by teamwork, effective leadership, innovation, and open communication is important for organizational excellence (Valenzuela et al., 2020). VA Healthcare System should consider the above cultural aspects to achieve its performance targets and standards.

The other internal factor driving change in VA Healthcare System is leadership. Organizational leadership is important for the realization of the desired goals and objectives. The leaders of VA Healthcare System have the responsibility of ensuring that the employees are motivated to adopt behaviors that align with the mission of the organization. They also empower the healthcare providers to patient-centered models of care that respond to the current and emerging needs of the patients (Sfantou et al., 2017). The leadership therefore ensures the effective implementation of change in the organization by ensuring that innovative interventions are utilized to achieve the mission and vision of the organization.

The external factor that is driving change in VA Healthcare System is legislation. VA Healthcare System is a government institution that provides care to veterans in the state. The organization operates in alignment with the legal provisions that guide healthcare organizations. It has to embrace change initiatives that align with legal requirements such as HIPAA for the utilization of health information systems. The organization also has to ensure that it protects the rights of its stakeholders in providing its care services (Ali et al., 2021). For instance, it must ensure that patients have access to high quality, safe and efficient care. It also has to transform its systems and processes to ensure that it is responsive to the current and emerging needs in healthcare. Therefore, legislation is a critical external force that contributes to change in the VA Healthcare System.

Technology is the other external force that drives change in the VA Healthcare System. Health organizations in the modern world largely utilize health technologies to achieve their performance objectives. Health technologies are associated with benefits that include enhanced safety, efficiency and quality. VA Healthcare System has to adopt modern technologies to lead in the provision of patient-centered care. It has to utilize systems such as telehealth to enhance care coordination in providing services to its stakeholders. It also has to remain up-to-date with the current technological advances in healthcare to ensure its performance and competitiveness (Christensen, 2018). Therefore, VA Healthcare System has to constantly explore evolving technologies to provide appropriate services to its populations, hence, acting as a source of change.

Selected Force

The selected force that drives change in the organization is culture. As noted initially, culture refers to the ways in which things are done in an organization. Culture is created with a number of issues in the organization. Firstly, it increases the need for the provision of culturally appropriate care to veterans by the healthcare providers. Healthcare providers have to ensure that the care that patients receive aligns with their values, needs, beliefs, and preferences. Culture also creates conflicts and misunderstandings among the healthcare providers. VA Healthcare System has healthcare providers from different backgrounds. The diversity implies that the risk for cultural conflicts and misunderstandings on the interpretation of needs exists. The conflicts may hinder the efficiency of teamwork and collaboration strategies utilized to achieve the desired care outcomes in the organization (Arefin et al., 2020). Therefore, as a driving force for change, the organization has to be sensitive in the strategies it utilizes to ensure their cultural appropriateness.

Steps for the Organization

VA Healthcare System is required to embrace a number of steps to respond effectively to cultural needs of the different stakeholders in healthcare. One of the steps is the provision of patient-centered care. The care given to patients in VA Healthcare System should target the unique needs of the veterans. The values, beliefs, preferences, and practices of the veterans should be incorporated into the care process. The needs of the veterans should be prioritized in decision-making (McCalman et al., 2017). The utilization of patient-centered interventions contributes to cultural competency since patients are empowered to play an active role in the care process.

The other step that should be considered in VA Healthcare System is offering training on culture-related issues to healthcare providers. Regular training opportunities are needed to raise the knowledge and skills of the healthcare providers on offering culturally appropriate care. Training also builds their competence on ways in which organizational systems and processes can be transformed to support the provision of culturally sensitive care. The other step is providing care that addresses barriers to care. An example is focusing on the use of interventions such as interpreters and decision aids to eliminate communication barriers in VA care. Community workers can also be involved in the provision of care to veterans to enhance care coordination. Addressing barriers to access to care will improve patient satisfaction with care, adherence to treatment and enhance their quality of life (Abrishami, 2018). The additional steps that are needed for the organization include the incorporation of culturally appropriate values and attitudes into tools of health promotion, including family members in decision-making and expanding linguistic competency beyond the patient encounter in the clinical settings.

Prediction of Employee Response

The employees in the organization will support the above interventions to ensure cultural competence in the organization. Cultural competence is a critical skill for healthcare providers to offer appropriate care to diverse populations. The cultural needs of patients often change, increasing the need for cultural awareness among the healthcare providers. The healthcare providers in the institution understand that culturally appropriate care contributes to outcomes such as patient satisfaction, empowerment and involvement in the care process. Therefore, the employees in all the levels of the organization are likely to support the implementation of the above interventions to promote patient care.

Vision for Change

The employees in VA Healthcare System do not appear to behave in accordance with the mission of the institution. The employees have a negative attitude towards the use of culturally appropriate interventions to meet the vision of the organization. Therefore, my vision of change is to create an organization where the employees understand the importance of cultural competence in contributing to the realization of the organizational mission.

How the Vision will assist Internal Stakeholders

The vision will assist internal stakeholders in supporting the change initiative. The vision will help the employees learn about culturally appropriate behaviors in the provision of patient care. They will also learn about the strategies needed to promote the creation of a culturally inclusive environment in the organization. Lastly, the vision will help internal stakeholders to learn effective strategies for sustaining culturally appropriate interventions in patient care. Some of the potential considerations that the stakeholders may pose include cost and benefit analysis of the interventions, sustainability strategies and ways of ensuring that the healthcare providers support the intervention. I will respond to them using evidence-based data about the importance of the interventions and providing training for the healthcare providers.

Change Initiative: Creating Vision Conclusion

In summary, change is important for organizational success. Change enables health organizations to embrace innovative strategies to address current and unidentified needs. Internal and external factors drive change in VA Healthcare System. VA Healthcare System should embrace interventions that ensure culturally appropriate care is offered to the stakeholders. Through it, the needs of the patients and other stakeholders will be addressed effectively.

Change Initiative: Creating Vision References

Abrishami, D. (2018). The Need for Cultural Competency in Health Care. Radiologic Technology, 89(5), 441–448.

Ali, A., Iqbal, S., Haider, S. A., Tehseen, S., Anwar, B., Sohail, M., & Rehman, K. (2021). Does Governance in Information Technology Matter When It Comes to Organizational Performance in Pakistani Public Sector Organizations? Mediating Effect of Innovation. SAGE Open, 11(2), 21582440211016556. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440211016557

Arefin, Md. S., Hoque, Md. R., & Rasul, T. (2020). Organizational learning culture and business intelligence systems of health-care organizations in an emerging economy. Journal of Knowledge Management, 25(3), 573–594. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-09-2019-0517

Christensen, J. K. B. (2018). The Emergence and Unfolding of Telemonitoring Practices in Different Healthcare Organizations. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 15(1), 61. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15010061

McCalman, J., Jongen, C., & Bainbridge, R. (2017). Organisational systems’ approaches to improving cultural competence in healthcare: A systematic scoping review of the literature. International Journal for Equity in Health, 16(1), 78. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-017-0571-5

Sfantou, D. F., Laliotis, A., Patelarou, A. E., Sifaki- Pistolla, D., Matalliotakis, M., & Patelarou, E. (2017). Importance of Leadership Style towards Quality of Care Measures in Healthcare Settings: A Systematic Review. Healthcare, 5(4), 73. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare5040073

Va.gov. (n.d.). About VA [Homepage]. Retrieved from https://www.va.gov/ABOUT_VA/index.asp

Valenzuela, M. A., Flinchbaugh, C., & Rogers, S. E. (2020). Can organizations help adjust?: The effect of perceived organizational climate on immigrants’ acculturation and consequent effect on perceived fit. Journal of International Management, 26(3), 100775. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intman.2020.100775

A Sample Answer 2 For the Assignment: Change Initiative: Creating Vision

Title: Change Initiative: Creating Vision

Change is an inevitable phenomenon in the existence of any organization. An organization that does not change as imposed by its internal and external environments is at risk of extinction (Nilsen et al., 2020). Change is critical to organizational growth, development, and survival, and if an organization remains at the status quo, it becomes stagnant and irrelevant and eventually becomes insolvent. This essay will explore the driving forces of change in my organization, discuss a force requiring change, and create a vision to motivate the change.

Presentation of Organization

Hackensack Meridian Health is a leading not-for-profit health care organization. It is the largest, most comprehensive, and integrated health care network in New Jersey, providing a wide range of medical services, innovative research, and life-enhancing care (Hackensack Meridian, 2021). The organization network has over 500 patient care locations throughout New Jersey. The mission of Hackensack Meridian is “To transform health care and be recognized as the leader of positive change.” Its vision is “To create a world where the highest quality care is human-centered, accessible and affordable” (Hackensack Meridian, 2021). We strive to deliver health outcomes that matter most and that excellence is the standard. The organization’s internal stakeholders comprise the board of trustees, the management team, medical staff, and non-medical staff. External stakeholders include patients, the New Jersey community, insurance providers, and the state government.

External and Internal Forces That Drive Organizational Change

External forces refer to factors in the organization’s external environment that influence change but are outside the organization’s control. The external forces that drive change at Hackensack Meridian Health include population demographics, social and cultural factors, technology advancements, government laws, and political changes in the country (Aronsson et al., 2021). These factors have forced the organization to constantly change in order to adapt to the transforming external environmental situation. Adapting to external changes is crucial for the organization to remain sustainable. Internal forces are factors that influence change in the organization and are under an organization’s control (Aronsson et al., 2021). Internal driving forces include the management and leadership styles, organizational culture, technology capacity, policies, and the organization’s structures, systems, and practices. Limitations in the internal forces compel and drive changes within our organization.

Analysis of the Effect of Specific Driving Force on Organization

Technology advancements have significantly driven change at Hackensack Meridian. Changes in technology in the external organizational environment and other healthcare organizations compel an organization to adopt the new technological systems (Safi et al., 2018). This is because an organization that has not adopted the new technology becomes less competitive since its organizational operations become less cost-effective. As a result, an organization is forced to embrace the new technology. Adopting new technology means that the organization’s work structure with regard to systems, procedures, operations, and processes become affected (Safi et al., 2018). Alterations in the workflow structure result in the organization creating a new workflow structure. This implies that change will occur within the organization from the adoption and implementation of new technology. For that reason, new advancements in technology serve as drivers of organizational change (Safi et al., 2018). Furthermore, technological advancements alter the labor force in an organization, especially for employees in mid-and lower-level hospital positions. This is because technological advancements lead to increased efficiencies at the cost of human replacement in the workforce.

Steps Needed for the Organization or Department to Respond to the Driving Force

Hackensack Meridian needs to embrace new health information technologies and upgrade the existing ones to remain competitive with other organizations. The first step in responding to the driving force of technological advancements is to clearly define the change and align it to the organization’s goal (Courtney, 2020). This will include identifying the technological advancements that need to be adopted and why the change is needed. The second step will be to determine the impact of adopting the new technology at different organizational levels. Besides, the organization will need to determine who will be affected most by the new technology and how it be received by the various staff (Courtney, 2020). The third step will entail creating a communication strategy that includes a timeline for how the new change will be gradually communicated, key information, and the communication channels and mediums to be used.

The fourth step will be to provide effective staff training to equip them with the knowledge and skills required to operate efficiently as the new technology is rolled out. The fifth step will be to implement a support structure (Courtney, 2020). The structure is crucial in assisting the staff to adjust practically and emotionally to the new technology and to be proficient in the behaviors and technical skills required to attain the desired results. The last step will be to develop a structure that measures the impact of the new technology on the organization and ensures that constant reinforcement opportunities are available to build proficiencies.

How Employees Will Respond to the Proposed Change Initiative

Employees may respond differently to the new technological changes based on their position in the organizational structure. The response by the top-level manager might be mixed since new technology will improve patient care efficiencies and reduce the workload but will come at a financial cost for the organization (Safi et al., 2018). Employees at the middle level might embrace the new technology changes since they will improve patient care efficiencies, reduce workload, and improve patient outcomes. However, resistance might also arise among the middle-level staff if challenges occur during the implementation of the new technology (Safi et al., 2018). Furthermore, low-level employees might widely accept the new technology changes since they will ease patient care delivery such as documentation and charting, reduce workload, facilitate delivery of quality patient care, and improve patient outcomes. Nevertheless, if the new technologies will lender some employees redundant, it may face resistance.

Vision for Change

A change vision guides an organization by communicating what it wishes to attain after implementing a change strategy. The vision change for our organization with regards to technological advancement is: “To utilize advanced health technologies to transform health care through education, research and practice.” The vision is consistent with the organization’s mission since it also seeks to transform healthcare. Embracing and using health technologies will place the organization at the forefront of promoting positive change in the healthcare industry. The vision will motivate employees to engage in research to develop new IT technologies that will improve the delivery of healthcare and patient outcomes (Nilsen et al., 2020). It will also motivate them to try out emerging healthcare technologies and put them into practice when providing patient care. I will propose the vision to the internal stakeholders by arranging for a vision meeting where I will present the vision, discuss the ideas behind the vision, and discuss changes that should be implemented to get close to the vision. In addition, I will present goals that will guide the attainment of the vision and explain how potential challenges will be addressed.

How the Vision Will Assist Internal Stakeholders in Supporting the Change Initiative

The vision articulates the type of change I wish to see in the organization and the desired outcomes from implementing the change. The vision will encourage the organization’s internal stakeholders to support the change initiative since it articulates what needs to be done, that is, utilize advanced health technologies. It also states that the expected results from adopting the technologies are to transform healthcare, which will motivate the stakeholders to join the course. The vision also states that healthcare transformation will result from education, research, and practice, which informs the stakeholders on the necessary steps to achieve the vision.

Conclusion

The mission of Hackensack Meridian Health is to transform health care and become a leader of positive change. External drivers of organizational change include population demographics, social and cultural factors, technology advancements, government laws, and political changes. Internal drivers include management and leadership styles, organizational culture, technology capacity, policies, and the organization’s structures, systems, and practices. Technology advancements compel an organization to adopt new technological systems, which alter the workflow structure resulting in a change in an organization. My vision for technological advancements is to adopt advanced health technologies to transform health care through education, research and practice. The change initiative might be accepted since it will streamline healthcare delivery, reduce workload and improve health outcomes. However, it might face resistance due to the financial costs needed and if it renders some employees redundant.

References

Aronsson, F., Huusko, A., & Wansulin, V. (2021). Internal and External Forces of Organizational Change in Project Management: A case study on a collaborative project.

Courtney, F. (2020). Steps to Effective Organizational Change Management. URL: https://www. pulse learning. com (дата звернення 20.12. 2020 р.).

Hackensack Meridian Health. (2021, April 13). Who we are. https://www.hackensackmeridianhealth.org/about/who-we-are/

Safi, S., Thiessen, T., & Schmailzl, K. J. (2018). Acceptance and Resistance of New Digital Technologies in Medicine: Qualitative Study. JMIR research protocols, 7(12), e11072. https://doi.org/10.2196/11072

Nilsen, P., Seing, I., Ericsson, C., Birken, S. A., & 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(1), 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-020-4999-8