Introduction
Organizational change is a powerful process many institutions consider when they want to transform operations and meet the demands of more clients. Medical facilities that embrace the idea can solve their challenges and be prepared for some of the emerging challenges in their respective sectors. Baptist Health South Florida Hospital is presently one of the best examples of medical facilities that have achieved notable gains in Florida. This paper describes one of the change events that have taken place in this organization, some of the recorded weaknesses, and evidence-based lessons that can guide its leaders to maximize the benefit of the ongoing process.
Brief Summary
Baptist Health South Florida Hospital is an influential and successful healthcare institution found in South Florida. It has formulated appropriate values, organizational structures, and goals that resonate with the demands of many citizens in the region. The existing culture encourages all caregivers to focus on patients’ experiences, solve some of the emerging challenges, and improve medical care procedures continuously (Dyrda, 2020). With these initiatives and achievements in place, the concept of organizational development (OD) could be reconsidered to transform this organization and make it more successful.
Recent Change Event
Baptist Health South Florida Hospital has been considering and implementing a number of changes to improve the nature of service delivery. In 2020, the facility decided to invest 100 million US dollars to maximize its digital platforms and meet the changing needs of more patients. This development resonates with the idea of integrating health informatics to streamline care delivery and make medical practice seamless (Dyrda, 2020). Some of the areas the system is intended to introduce include improving registration and scheduling procedures, making its website more effective and user-friendly, improving its data analytics systems, and introducing a telemedicine app.
From the nature of this ongoing change, it is evident that the hospital has succeeded in doing a number of things right. For instance, the leaders decided to invest a large sum of money in the project. Experts and technologists were involved throughout the process to make the project successful. The entire process was integrated and connected with the existing organizational structure. The use and introduction of big data analytical systems would help support the entire process (Dyrda, 2020). The effort to integrate the new technological system with the existing telemedicine platform would help support the introduction of a new app. The process would make it possible for patients to get lab results instantly and benefit from online consultations.
Past scholars and analysts have presented powerful concepts and strategies for implementing organizational change. For instance, Miles and Scott (2019) indicate that organizational change is a complex process that requires proper leadership and guidance. At this facility, the topmost leaders were involved to support the strategy, providing the relevant resources, and making timely adjustments. The consideration of organizational structure and culture are powerful forces for ensuring that the involved individuals are supported and capable of delivering results. For Baptist Health, some approaches were done properly to ensure the new technological system could become part of the institution and help transform care delivery to more patients.
However, a number of mistakes in the change process could be deduced from the ongoing transformation at this hospital. One, the leaders did not consider the power of an effective change theory. This gap made that most of the workers were not informed about the process early in advance. Second, the professionals ignored the power of a contingency plan to mitigate some of the possibilities that could emerge throughout the process. Yang et al. (2019) indicate that a proper backup plan is always appropriate to help minimize some of the possible challenges while focusing on the demands of all key followers. This analysis means that the presence of specific weaknesses can have negative impacts on the overall gains of the intended change.
Despite some of the recorded issues, a number of lessons are evident from the implemented past event. First, the case of Baptist Health Hospital reveals that organizational leaders should always be keen to monitor some of the recorded transformations in any given sector, including healthcare (Dyrda, 2020). This medical facility has realized that emerging technologies are essential and capable of transforming the health outcomes of more patients. Second, the selected case has revealed that the involvement of all key partners and stakeholders is an evidence-based approach for ensuring that any change is successful. Third, continuous monitoring is essential to identify some of the recorded challenges and introduce better initiatives to make the change successful (Reed, 2017). Finally, the evaluation reveals that a number of weaknesses might emerge when medical institutions are implementing new changes. This reality explains why change leaders should be keen to utilize change theories and contingency plans to maximize the overall outputs.
Change Leadership
Change leadership remains a powerful strategy for guiding organizations to move from point A to B. Professionals involved in the process can embrace the concept to influence their followers, make timely decisions, and embrace the power of advocacy to establish the best platform for delivering new results. With proper leadership, a given institution will be in a position to implement change more efficiently and eventually achieve the intended goals. To ensure that timely results are recorded, proficient leaders tend to possess and promote these three attributes: commitment, collaboration, and communication (Miles & Scott, 2019). The ability to communicate helps all participants to focus on the anticipated goals and the change that can deliver timely results. Collaboration helps all people to be involved and follow the steps of the leader. These attributes are in accordance with the 3C model for proper organizational transformation.
The best leader, as examined from the selected case study, revealed that leaders should foster support, influence their followers in a positive manner, and learn from past events. To navigate and push the intended change forward, leaders should be resilient, provide timely resources, encourage their followers to handle stress, and have a proper plan. With these aspects in place, the organization can consider the power of a change model to deliver desirable results (Yang et al., 2019). For example, Kurt Lewin’s change theory stands out as a powerful strategy that can make it possible for more organizations to introduce better and superior practices much faster. For Baptist Health, this theory will encourage more individuals to be involved and ensure that they all focus on the targeted outcomes.
For this hospital, Kurt Lewin’s theory will provide the best platform for guiding the current change process. The theory presents these three steps: unfreeze, change, and freeze (Cummings et al., 2016). The first stage is that of unfreezing whereby the participants and followers will learn more about the intended change and some of the procedures that can take the hospital to the next level. The medical experts will appreciate that the effective use of emerging technology platforms will help improve care delivery and meet the demands of more patients. The medical professionals will start to compare the institution with the existing rivals in South Florida. The leaders will create the best environment and favorable conditions whereby the individuals will not be resistant to the process (Cummings et al., 2016). The second stage is the one whereby change would be implemented. This stage will guide the process of integrating the ongoing procedures and ensuring that technologies reshape the speed and nature of service delivery to more patients. The freezing stage will be the final one whereby the introduced approaches will become the norm.
Strategic Steps
Change theory supports the provision of resources throughout the process to ensure that timely results are recorded. Throughout the process, leaders can apply diverse strategies to engage their employees at different organizational levels and stages. For instance, the introduction of a project management plan will provide room for learning more from the workers and identifying some of the challenges that might arise (Warrick, 2017). This approach will minimize resistance and improve the chances of success.
As described, the first stage of Lewin’s theory presents room for employees to remain involved and provide timely insights for supporting the process. Cummings et al. (2016) also indicate that the change leader should have a proper communication plan that allows all followers to present their insights. This approach will minimize the chances of failure and eventually ensure that the organization achieves its goals. Since the studied change has already been launched, the managers will have to liaise with all departmental leaders and decision-makers to ensure that the implemented technologies resonate with the outlined organizational goals.
Organizational Values
The success of the selected medical facility is attributable to the core values that have defined its mission and vision statements for years. These include the promotion of core values that define the community, stewardship, respect, focus on excellence, and advocacy. The decision to introduce the new change resonates with the desire to promote these core values (Warrick, 2017). For instance, the move to expand its digital presence means that it will be keen to maximize the excellence of its services and eventually provide compassionate and personalized medical consultations and care to more patients. The organization will benefit from additional resources for responsible and charitable services (Reed, 2017). The approach will maximize respect and ensure that timely results are recorded in a timely manner. The success of this change process means that more stakeholders will continue to find these core values meaningful and capable of supporting the provision of timely and high-quality medical services.
Conclusion
The above discussion has identified Baptist Health South Florida Hospital as one of the successful medical institutions in South Florida. The ongoing change is intended to make the facility more digitally recognizable and capable of meeting the medical needs of more patients with diverse backgrounds. The consideration of the outlined change procedures and plans at the facility is a powerful approach that can support the entire event while maintaining the relevance of its core organizational values, mission, and vision.
References
Cummings, S., Bridgman, T., & Brown, K. G. (2016). Unfreezing change as three steps: Rethinking Kurt Lewin’s legacy for change management. Human Relations, 69(1), 33-60.
Dyrda, L. (2020). Baptist Health launches $100M digital transformation to become ‘Amazon Prime of healthcare’: 5 details. Health IT.
Miles, J. M., & Scott, E. S. (2019). A new leadership development model for nursing education. Journal of Professional Nursing, 35(1), 5-11.
Reed, P. (2017). Translating nursing philosophy for practice and healthcare policy. Nursing Science Quarterly, 30(3), 1-12.
Warrick, D. D. (2017). What leaders need to know about organizational culture. Business Horizons, 60(3), 395-404. Web.
Yang, H., Poly, T. N., & Li, Y. (2019). Challenges of patient’s safety, satisfaction and quality of care in developing and developed counties. International Journal for Quality in Health Care, 31(5), 323-324.