Introduction
Vanguard Healthcare is a United States non-profit medical organization that operates in four states. It was established in 1997 with a view of offering superior medical services in Arizona, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Texas. The facility offers diverse health care products and services such as behavioral health, critical, cancer, emergency, and home hospice care among others. Currently, the organization operates several outpatient outlets in four states. The essay provides a comprehensive analysis of Vanguard Healthcare Services LLC’s readiness for the next decade by exploring its strategic plan in areas such as network growth, nurse staffing, resource management, and patient satisfaction.
Readiness for the next decade
In the wake of current technological advancements, healthcare organizations are prioritizing their strategies to match up with changing patient needs (Huber, 2014). Vanguard Healthcare has improvised its technology in response to future clinical needs. For instance, the organization has adopted a technology initiative that is aimed at providing technical services such as automated clinical services. Other technological improvisations that are being initiated in the organization are surgical robots and intelligent health systems (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
According to Pratt (2013), Vanguard Healthcare has put in place several mechanisms to improve service delivery across its areas of operation. The organization has expanded its internal facilities in many of its satellite branches. Other expansion plans that are aimed at accommodating clinical staff and medical facilities include the opening up of new outlets (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
Strategic Plan
According to Huber (2014), a strategy is a set of defined objectives and goals that an organization sets to achieve over a certain period. On the other hand, a strategic plan refers to mechanisms for implementing formulated policies. It entails making decisions as well as pulling resources towards achieving the formulated strategies. The strategic plan for Vanguard Healthcare involves improvising clinical infrastructure, developing new technologies, and nurturing staff professionalism through training and expansion of its facilities (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
Addressing Network Growth
Vanguard Healthcare is one of the highly networked organizations in the US. This health care setting teams up with many commercial bodies, employer groups, and the US government to ensure the delivery of holistic, affordable, and convenient medical services to the public. For instance, Vanguard Healthcare has collaborated with the Baptist Health System in San Antonio as a way of promoting its network growth. The organizations comprise more than 14,000 employees working in 15 hospital outlets that team up with the networked health centers and clinics. The network comprises provider groups with specialty physicians (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
According to Pratt (2013), the creation of core networks is facilitated through mergers and consolidations. The organization is said to collaborate with the University of Arizona Health Network. It has also acquired new medical centers and infrastructure. New projects are also being constructed to provide a statewide network (Pratt, 2013).
Nurse staffing
Vanguard Healthcare is rated as one of the leading employers in Arizona, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Texas. Nursing staffs at Vanguard Healthcare comprise clinical and non-clinical employees holding positions in different levels of the organization. The staff works in registry, travel levels, and holding international positions. The organization is committed to ensuring professionalism and competency of its staff. Its nursing staff consists of registry nurses. It has developed training mechanisms for its staff (Pratt, 2013).
Pratt (2013) posits that the organization offers simulation education to its staff to equip them with the relevant skills matching the current technology. It has also improvised facilities that are essential for offering such high-tech training. This strategy is one of the ways in which the organization plans to handle the current shortage of registered nurses.
Resource management
Vanguard Healthcare has its technology department resources spread in four areas such as clinical engineering, diagnostic imaging service, clinical technology assessment, and care planning among others. The organizations assets are valued at approximately 1.2 billion dollars. Resource management at Vanguard Healthcare is highly structured. The division of the technology management department enables effectiveness in management of innovative facilities (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
Vanguard Healthcare manages technology through improvisation of its existing resources. The organization has teamed up with other organizations to ensure seamless professional nursing staff. For instance, it collaborates with the Arizona Medical Instrumentation Association (AZMIA) with a view of nurturing nurse talents.
The management is composed of a team of qualified personnel operating the organization’s resources. The team includes both clinical and non-clinical employees who operate clinical rooms, beds, and technological medical facilities among other resources. Management of medical facilities and other equipment is done centrally. Since the organization operates on large networked geographical area, operating of these materials and technological equipment accrues benefits such as economies of scale (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
The health care setting is also in processes of acquiring new technological facilities. Plans are underway to develop cost-friendly systems for telemedicine as well as other clinical technologies. In addition, the organization has developed high-tech mobile designs that improvise clinical services. These systems include tele-psychiatry, tele-pediatrics, tele-stroke, tele-neurology, e-SNF (e-skilled nursing facilities), and patient-centered medical home. This new technology is aimed at improvising service delivery and providing affordable patient care (Pratt, 2013).
To ensure safe and standard supplies, the organization vets its suppliers and makes recommendations for its products. It has also put other mechanisms that are aimed at reducing costs such as collaboration with other bodes and computerization of its operations. However, this strategy has increased operational costs in service delivery (Pratt, 2013).
Patient Satisfaction
This health care organization is rated as one of the best health care providers in Arizona, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Texas. Furthermore, it is a non-profit making organization. Therefore, quality and affordable products and services are easily accessible to the public. Its tech-medicine programs provide effective and safe patient care. In addition, this organization is highly networked. This improvises its interaction with the public who are able to access quality services from the community of specialty physicians in the network (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
The organization has developed effective and efficient health care systems aimed at improving patient care. These systems include, care management, care transformation, patient experience and innovation. The improvised service delivery in this organization has promoted patient care. Customers who receive services from this health care organization feel safe and secure. Since Vanguard Healthcare is a cost-friendly organization that focuses on quality, many patients have shown satisfaction after receiving services from this organization. Finally, patient satisfaction at Vanguard Healthcare is attained through spiritual and emotional health services provided. These services are offered by spiritual staff that by providing pastoral services, religious sacraments, consultations and crisis response (Vanguard Health Systems, 2009).
Conclusion
Vanguard Healthcare is a cost-friendly health organization that offers quality health care products and services. It is also improvising new technological improvements, expansions and enlarging its network. Its leadership is geared towards ensuring proper management of resources and promoting professionalism. The medical programs that are offered by the organization are standard. Therefore, customer needs are competently addressed.
Reference List
Huber, D. (2014). Leadership and nursing Management.Maryland Heights, MO: Saunders Elsevier
Pratt, M. (2013). Vanguard Health Systems: robust analytic capabilities add $62 million in new revenue. Computerworld, 47(14), 24.
Vanguard Health Systems. (2009). Vanguard Health Systems Overview. Web.