Children’s National Medical Center: Environmental Analysis Case Study

Company Introduction

Currently, the Children’s National Medical Center, located in Washington, DC, is the only center to offer a program for pediatric sports medicine in the region (Children’s National Health System [CNHS], 2018). It is also known to serve more than 5,000 patients every year, helping young athletes to overcome various sport-related injuries (CNHS, 2018). The current state of the center’s business environment seems to be stable and does not present any immediate threats to the system’s functioning. The main stakeholders in this sector of the healthcare industry are athletes, their families and caretakers, coaches or trainers, and physicians working in the same center (Kroshus et al., 2015).

Negative Scenarios

The range of scenarios can include positive, negative, and neutral situations (Ramírez & Selsky, 2016). The first adverse scenario deals with a sudden change in health regulations. For instance, the program may no longer be able to receive referrals from other states according to new legal rules that limit out-of-state care. This scenario is highly unlikely (Cairns, Goodwin, & Wright, 2016). It will lead to the center losing a significant part of its clients which may subsequently reduce employees’ workload and lead the organization to receive less money. By becoming financially unstable the company that is currently relying on clients and their parents as its primary stakeholders should take some steps to reduce its financial losses. CNHS can reduce the number of staff workers and redistribute the workload. Secondly, it may concentrate on other areas of healthcare services. The improbability of this scenario means that the center will not need to consider such possibilities in the nearest future.

The next scenario, however, may reduce the workload of the center at any moment in the foreseeable future. As the center is currently the only organization that provides sports medicine services to children in the area, it does not have any direct competitors. Therefore, the opening of a new organization in the city or the region may be a plausible negative scenario. Although the center’s popularity may remain high, it can lose some clients due to them choosing a new facility. This scenario has a higher probability than the previous one. Patients may wish to visit the new organization for several reasons. All of these factors should be analyzed by the CNHS to prevent the loss of its clients.

First of all, the new company may have a more convenient spot for the clients to visit the organization from more removed areas of the country. In this case, the new company may appeal to clients who live closer to the new location. The CNHS may consider adding new facilities that also offer pediatric sports medicine services. Otherwise, the center may include accommodations for comfortable transportation or create more parking options and public transportation opportunities.

Second, the new organization may offer a broader range of services to its clients. For instance, the CNHS’s services currently include physical therapy, minimally invasive surgery, radiology, and limb stabilization with braces and splints (CNHS, 2018). The range of services of the new organization may also include nutrition and hydration management, performance enhancement, and some alternative therapies. The broader scope of offered services can also create a strong competitor for the center. Here, the CNHS should consider hiring new specialists and providing new services to its clients. While this action may ask for additional expenses due to new job openings, new facilities, and added equipment, it can also attract new clients and reduce the possibility of becoming less competitive in the industry.

Some pessimistic scenarios may be connected to changes that happen inside the existing facilities. One of the problems that are frequent in medical organizations is the shortage of healthcare providers (Gregório, Cavaco, & Lapão, 2014). Here, the issue may lie in the lack of qualified physical therapists, radiologists, physicians, or surgeons. Other personnel that may be in shortage in nursing and administrative staff. This scenario may lead to the center is unable to care for all its patients. Thus, this could be a serious problem that should be resolved in a short period. Here, the center can consider attracting new employees with marketing efforts, better working conditions, and increased bonuses. Similar to the previous scenario, financial expenses have to be raised to eliminate the problem. To improve the rates of employee retention and support new workers, the center can introduce an improved system of compensations and benefits and provide employees with better insurance options.

Neutral and Positive Scenarios

Neutral scenarios may include unsuccessful attempts from competitors who will not decrease the demand for CNHS’ services. Furthermore, optimistic scenarios include a stable performance of existing facilities with the possible development of new branches. Moreover, while the center can accommodate a large number of patients, higher demand for the CNHS’ services can also force the organization to broaden its reach (Eisenberg et al., 2016). The popularity of the center and the lack of existing competitors also present an optimistic scenario attracting more potential employees and qualified medical professionals. This particular scenario is highly probable. Thus, the company should consider preparing for expansion. Furthermore, CNHS can add new services to further increase its chances of staying in high demand and attracting even more clients. The addition of new services may also provide more jobs for practitioners and personnel and positively influence working conditions for all employees.

References

Cairns, G., Goodwin, P., & Wright, G. (2016). A decision-analysis-based framework for analysing stakeholder behaviour in scenario planning. European Journal of Operational Research, 249(3), 1050-1062.

Children’s National Health System. (2018). Sports Medicine. Web.

Eisenberg, D. M., Kaptchuk, T., Post, D. E., Hrbek, A. L., O’connor, B. B., Osypiuk, K.,… Levy, D. B. (2016). Establishing an integrative medicine program within an academic health center: Essential considerations. Academic Medicine: Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, 91(9), 1223-1230.

Gregório, J., Cavaco, A., & Lapão, L. V. (2014). A scenario-planning approach to human resources for health: The case of community pharmacists in Portugal. Human Resources for Health, 12(1), 58.

Kroshus, E., Baugh, C. M., Daneshvar, D. H., Stamm, J. M., Laursen, R. M., & Austin, S. B. (2015). Pressure on sports medicine clinicians to prematurely return collegiate athletes to play after concussion. Journal of Athletic Training, 50(9), 944-951.

Ramírez, R., & Selsky, J. W. (2016). Strategic planning in turbulent environments: A social ecology approach to scenarios. Long Range Planning, 49(1), 90-102.