SWOT analysis is a precursor for strategic planning and is p

SWOT analysis is a precursor for strategic planning and is performed by a panel of experts who can assess an organization from a critical perspective. This panel could comprise senior leaders, board members, employees, medical staff, patients, community leaders, and technical experts. Panel members base their assessments on utilization rates, outcome measures, patient satisfaction statistics, organizational performance measures, and financial performance\" (Harrison, 2010).

How does SWOT analysis set the stage for strategic planning?

Famous hockey player, Wayne Gretzky said:\"I skate where the puck will be, not where it has been\". What does that mean? Explain how it relates to the healthcare organizations.

Solution

SWOT analysis is a tool for the managers to evaluate the strengths, weakness, opportunities, and threats of an organization or an upcoming project. It sets the stage for evaluating a strategy or success of a project. For example, a company is planning to launch a new product in the market. In this case, the company is required to perform a SWOT analysis in order to devise strategies for market penetration and positioning the product. The SWOT analysis give comprehensive analysis about the organization as well as about the strategies. By conducting a market research to know about the market, customer preferences and competitors, the organization will be able to devise strategies for their new product and sales growth. This makes sense of the great advice to marketers “Skate to where the puck is going to be.” That is to understand where the product is going to be launched. This analogy directs the marketers to look in to the future where the strategies play their role.

Strategy is about foresightedness and future. Hence it holds true with the analogy of a puck where it will be going. Like converting the movement of a hockey puck to goal is based on the competing team players’ presence in the field, it is very essential to look in to the forces operating in the market when a product gets launched.

SWOT ANALYSIS AND STRATEGIC PLANNING IN HEALTH CARE ORGANIZATIONS

If a health care organization is planning to implement a home-based communication system, the organization have to conduct a SWOT analysis in order to identify the strengths, opportunities and the threats after implementing this communication system. The hospital will be able to formulate strategies to overcome the threats and negative outcomes on implementation.

SWOT analysis of a health care system – implementation of home-based communication          

STRENGTHS

Because of improved and continued medical care, the chances of re-hospitalization will be reduced. It will be advantageous to the patients

Improved interactions between the patients and health professionals.

The virtual or online relationship between patients and health team will improve.

WEAKNESS

Lack of proper channels are the main challenges that has been faced by hospitals in providing continual medical care for patients.

OPPORTUNITIES

By setting up a home-based communication system, care homes and health systems will be able to overcome this major challenge to a great extent. The tele-home care is one such technology that is designed to solve this challenge and continue medical care to the patients with critical illness even after they are discharged to their homes.

The technology in the home based system will help the medical team to source the relevant information from devices like spirometers, blood pressure cuffs, videophones and other monitoring devices for these patients. Thus these new technologies are expected to solve many of the issues in continuing the medical care to the critically ill patients.

Benefits of implementation of home-based communication system

Patients could avail better support from the caregivers in order to improve their conditions. Such improved interactions will lead the medical team to detect various other health issues.

It will also improve the level of co-ordination and networking between caregivers, and other networking sites.

THREATS

The new technology may pose threat to the privacy and reliability concerns to data.

The organization may also face potential threats from similar organization who try to imitate this technology.

It may not be beneficial to the physicians as their earnings may get reduced which force them to leave the organization.