Week 2 Discussion: Changes in The Healthcare Environment
- Explore one type of change likely to occur in the healthcare environment over the next several years.
- Evaluate the four processes that are involved in environmental analysis.
- In your opinion, which one of the four processes you described above is the most important and why?
- What did you conclude from this evaluation?
To support your work, use your course and textbook readings and also use the South University Online Library. As in all assignments, cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format.
Your initial posting should be addressed at 150-300 words. Submit your document to this Discussion Area by the due date assigned. Be sure to cite your sources using APA format.
Respond to your peers throughout the unit. Justify your answers with examples, research, and reasoning. Follow up posts need to be submitted by the end of the week.
Use the following rubric as a guide to complete your discussion responses.
Sample Answer
Week 2 Discussion
Over the next several years, the healthcare industry is likely associated with more technology and information. The technological advancements will change how consumers manage their healthcare and the interaction of the patients with the providers (Tortorella et al., 2020). Specialized healthcare delivery techniques will rise as the new technology makes healthcare delivery more personalized than before.
Electronic technology is expected to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of delivery. The EMRs will be linked directly to billing (Tortorella et al., 2020). The physicians will soon find it easier to have software analyzing the types of procedures and services given to the patients. With the improvement of technology, the information collected from the patients will also improve (Tortorella et al., 2020). The availability of the internet and its successors will allow the EHRs to store patient data and generate information on best practices. Moreover, the technological improvement is likely to result in easy accessibility of medical data, hence, bettering the treatment process, the equipment used, and the delivery of medication.
The four processes involved in the environmental analysis include; scanning, monitoring, forecasting, and assessing. The scanning process entails seeking to identify the signals of ecological change through the surveillance of an appropriate environment to detect early signs of emerging change (Garg & Eslamian, 2017). The process of scanning also entails other sub-processes. For instance, it involves viewing external environmental information. It also entails organizing the data and classifying them into the required categories to determine the issues within every class. Monitoring is the search for more information for the confirmation or disapproval of the trend, development, or the possibility of event occurrence (Garg & Eslamian, 2017). The process of monitoring also entails keeping track of the issues in the environment that are determined in the scanning process. During this process, the sources of data are specified. It also entails the addition of the environmental database to confirm or disapprove the identified issues, trends, or events. It also involves determining the rate of change that is within points to gather information related to the identified issue.
Forecasting is concerned with developing possible projections of speed, scope, and direction of environmental change (Garg & Eslamian, 2017). This process is associated with the identification of the interrelationships existing between the issues and environmental categories. It also involves developing alternative projections. The last one is assessing, which entails investigating the meaning of the projected trend for the company based on how it relates to the external environment (Garg & Eslamian, 2017). Besides, during the assessment, the significance of the forecasted trend is evaluated in the organization. Besides, there is the identification of the forces that must be considered to formulate the mission, vision, and strategic plan.
The most crucial process is scanning, as it enables the organization to determine the environmental changes that are likely to occur and detect relevant problems that will impact the company. Doing this will be possible to take necessary steps to prevent the risks of the expected occurrences (Garg & Eslamian, 2017). Besides, the scanning process helps to make the required plans and collect the resources needed to avoid the event that is likely to occur. From this evaluation, I can conclude that it is essential for every business to prioritize identifying the factors in the external environment that are likely to change the industry’s operations and influence business activities.
