Introduction
The mission of healthcare is to provide high-quality care for all, but the analysis of Southern Regional Health System (SRHS) has demonstrated the medical staff’s failure to deliver care equitably across different ethnic and racial populations. SRHS is located in Jackson, Mississippi, which is a very diverse area that has high poverty rates, which, along with unemployment, vary based on race.
Main body
Black and Hispanic residents are “three times more likely to live in poverty” (Olden, 2014, p. 328). Non-whites are also twice more likely to be unemployed than white residents of the Jackson area. The issues of disparity continue on to healthcare, according to the baseline data collected at Southern Regional (Olden, 2014). Data on the quality of heart care shows that race and ethnicity factor into the patient’s ability to receive all the necessary heart failure care (Olden, 2014). The overall quality of care at Southern Regional is poor since “only 41 percent of patients were receiving all recommended heart failure care” (Olden, 2014, p. 328). The hospitals that belong to SRHS face the issue of providing low quality, disparate care associated with the patient’s ethnicity and race.
The solution relies on focusing on gradual organizational change through transformational leadership. Lack of awareness among the SRHS staff could be resolved by strong, motivating executive leaders who would utilize idealized influence and create a new mission for SRHS based on the statistical data from the reports (Boamah, Spence Laschinger, Wong, & Clarke, 2018). Gulick’s managerial model prioritizes planning, organizing, staffing, directing, coordinating, reporting, and budgeting as effective management functions (Chalekian, 2016).
Conclusion
Tim Hack and department heads need to develop a strategic plan that would include the diversification of staff and implementation of the required ‘unbiased care’ training coordinated by senior staff. The effectiveness of the proposed initiatives could be monitored by senior staff and evaluated by quarterly reports on the quality of care. Patient and staff surveys could be an effective tool to start open conversations and collect the necessary data regarding the quality of nursing and primary care.
References
Boamah, S. A., Spence Laschinger, H. K., Wong, C., & Clarke, S. (2018). Effect of transformational leadership on job satisfaction and patient safety outcomes. Nursing Outlook, 66(2), 180-189. Web.
Chalekian, P. M. (2016). Instantiations of POSDCORB: A framework-theory-model approach. Administration & Society, 48(3), 316-343. Web.
Olden, P. C. (2014). Management of Healthcare Organizations. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.