Introduction
The main goal of this report is to propose several interventions that can improve the work of the Health Care Network of Southwest Florida (HCNSF). In particular, much attention will be paid to the improvement of transportation between the two campuses of this organization. This paper will also include information about the history of this clinical agency as well as the difficulties that it currently encounters. Additionally, it is critical to provide the justification of the recommendations and describe the benefits that they can bring.
Overview of the clinical agency
It should be mentioned that the HCNSF is a not-for-profit healthcare organization that provides dental and primary medical care. Furthermore, this clinical agency offers medical services to children. This institution currently operates in various parts of Collier Country.
History of the organization and characteristics of the population served
This organization was founded in 1977; its main purpose was to serve the health needs of seasonal workers as well as farmers (Health Care Network, 2014). The HCNSF began to increase in 1993 because at that point, the population of Immokalee grew significantly. Apart from that, the organization that expanded the number of its facilities as well as healthcare programs. Overall, currently, the organization can serve the needs of people who may differ in terms of their income level. In particular, one should speak about field workers who do not always speak English. Therefore, in many cases, they cannot communicate with medical professionals properly. Additionally, these people can often be uninsured.
Definition of the management or leadership problem
The main problem is that field workers, who rely on the HCNSF, often do not receive appropriate services. This issue includes several important components. As it has been said before, they cannot easily communicate with healthcare professionals due to linguistic barriers. As a result, there is an increased risk of medical errors. Additionally, there is no triage doctor who can properly identify the healthcare needs of a patient. More importantly, there is no effective transpiration between the campuses of the HCNSF. As a result, patients may not receive medical assistance in time. Overall, it is important to remove these barriers to healthcare.
Significance of the problem
This issue is significant because it affects thousands of patients who may seek assistance in the HCNSF. Additionally, this problem can result in severe complications that can be explained by the failure to provide timely healthcare services. In some cases, these complications can lead to fatal consequences.
Goals or outcomes
Overall, there are several important objectives included in this project. At first, one should develop a system of transportation between the two campuses of the HCNSF. Yet, at first, it is critical to estimate the cost of this intervention. This is one of the tasks that should be considered. Moreover, one should develop a schedule for triage doctors who need to support field workers seeking medical help. Finally, it is important to measure patient turn-away rate because this indicator is important for evaluating the effectiveness of this medical institution.
Review of the literature related to the problem
At first, one should mention that scholars support the idea of dual triage which is performed by doctors and nurses (Richardson, Braitberg, & Yeoh, 2004, p. 41). To a great extent, this policy is critical for reducing the risk of medical errors. Moreover, it can significantly improve time-efficiency in this hospital. Moreover, researchers note that linguistic barriers can significantly increase the risk of medical errors; therefore, it may be necessary to use the services of interpreters (Alborn & McKinley, 2014). Additionally, the administrators of the HCNSF should keep in mind that such barriers to healthcare can prevent patients from undergoing routine medical examinations (Finkelman & Kenner, 2013). Among such barriers, one can certainly distinguish the absence of transportation between the campuses of the HCNSF. As a result, the health problems of this individual can become more complicated. It is critical for nurses to identify these barriers and take various steps to eliminate them (Finkelman & Kenner, 2013; Grossman & Valiga, 2013). One of their main duties is to focus on the needs of people who are disadvantaged due cultural, linguistic, or economic factors (Porter-O’Grady, & Malloch, 2013). These are the key elements that can be identified.
Interventions to address the problem
Thus, it is possible to distinguish several interventions that can support the needs of patients. At first, the administrators of this hospital should make sure that there is an effective transportation system between the two campuses of this organization. So, patients will receive healthcare services as soon as possible.
Secondly, it is necessary to work out a schedule for the work of physicians. In particular, at any time of day, there should be at least one triage doctor in each clinic. This healthcare professional will be able to evaluate the state of a patient and distinguish potential risks. For instance, this person can determine whether a person requires hospitalization. This step is also important for providing timely medical services.
Additionally, the staff of each clinic should include at least one interpreter who should assist those patients who cannot speak English. These individuals are at a greater risk of becoming the victims of medical errors. This is one of the pitfalls that should be avoided.
Impact of the interventions
One can distinguish several beneficial impacts of the proposed interventions. At first, they can be important for reducing the number of medical errors that can profoundly affect the health of a patient. Additionally, this policy can make people more willing to ask for healthcare assistance as soon as possible. To a great extent, this result will be achieved through the removal of existing barriers such as lack of transportation system, shortage of triage doctors as well as medical interpreters. Finally, these interventions can significantly minimize patient turn-away rate because medical workers will better assess the needs of patients. Those individuals, who do require hospitalization, will not have to go a different hospital since there are no available beds in the HCNSF. These are the main beneficial aspects of this policy, and the costs, which will be spent, can be quite justified. Provided that funding is available, the proposed practices can be adopted within less than three weeks.
Conclusion
On the whole, this discussion shows that the challenges faced by the patients of the HCNSF can be mostly explained by several internal inefficiencies that can be addressed by the management. For instance, the hospital administrators can develop a new schedule for triage doctors. They can also improve the transportation between different facilities that are included in the structure of the HCNSF. Furthermore, the proposed interventions can effectively address various problems that patients can struggle with.
References
Alborn, J., & McKinley, K. (2014). Use of and interaction with medical interpreters. American Journal Of Health-System Pharmacy, 71(12), 1044-1048.
Finkelman, A., & Kenner, C. (2013).Professional Nursing Concepts: Competencies for Quality Leadership. New York, NY: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Grossman, S & Valiga, T. (2013). The new leadership challenge: Creating the future of nursing. Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis.
Health Care Network. (2015). History & milestones. Web.
Porter-O’Grady, T., & Malloch, K. (2013). Leadership in nursing practice: Changing the landscape of health care. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Richardson, J., Braitberg, G., & Yeoh, M. (2004). Multidisciplinary assessment at triage: A new way forward. Emergency Medicine Australasia, 16(1), 41-46.