Assessment Instrument: SCOPE
The chosen assessment instrument for the current project is the SCOPE (Situation, Core Competencies, Obstacles, Prospects, and Expectations) Situational Analysis. It is a relevant alternative to the SWOT framework, enabling a more thoughtful approach that considers the past, present, and future of the project (“SWOT alternative,” n.d.). In this context, the Situation implies the background of the initiative, providing necessary information about the existing conditions related to internal/external factors. The area of Core Competencies ensures that the organization has resources and assets critical to the completion of the project. Consequently, the category of Obstacles examines the most pressing issues and weaknesses that might obstruct the process. The area of Prospects analyzes the opportunities of the project and Expectations concerning the initiative’s results.
Internal Factors
Consequently, it is critical to discuss the impact of internal and external factors on the feasibility of the project. Internal factors are the issues under the control of the hospital that should be considered in the development plan. The Situation category of the SCOPE analysis thoroughly analyzes the existing internal factors to assess the existing conditions. In the context of the Massachusetts General Hospital, there are multiple strengths that can be used to facilitate the project. They include world-class patient care, excellent competencies of the staff members, and an emphasis on diversity (Massachusetts General Hospital, n.d.). These factors significantly facilitate the assistance program for LEP patients. As a result, Mass General is in an advantageous position regarding the project due to its extensive number of internal strengths and lack of weaknesses.
External Factors
External factors present a more challenging situation for Mass General because these are issues outside of the hospital’s scope of control. The most pressing problem is the growing number of LEP patients in the United States and a lack of a centralized approach to the problem (Herzberg et al., 2022). For instance, during the pandemic, there were approximately 60% of patients with a certain degree of LEP at Mass General, which is an extremely high number (Herzberg et al., 2022). At this point, the internal strengths are not sufficient to address the problem, and a lack of external support is a relevant problem for LEP patients. Another external issue is the possibility of emergencies, such as the pandemic, when LEP patients have no choice but to receive services from English-oriented hospitals.
Financial Assessment
To mitigate described external weaknesses, the hospital must invest in additional interpreting services and retraining programs. It will have a negative financial impact on the hospital initially, but it is a critical step for Mass General in order to maintain the world-class quality of provided services. The prospects of the initiative include a lower rate of readmissions due to communication problems, which implies financial benefits in the future (Pinto Taylor et al., 2019). In other words, although the hospital will lose money initially, this investment will be beneficial for Mass General in the long term. To mitigate the early issues, it is possible to implement a fundraising campaign, which might be successful due to the large number of people with LEP in the region and local communities.
Additional Resources
Interpreting Services
Lastly, it is essential to address the need for additional resources, such as staffing and necessary technology. Interpreting services are critical to the current project, and the most pressing issue is Spanish-English translation. According to research during the peak of the pandemic in Boston, approximately 40% of all patients with LEP in Mass General had Spanish heritage (Herzberg et al., 2022). In this sense, the hospital needs to ensure that it can address the needs of the largest group of LEP patients by establishing interpreting services in Spanish-English translation. Moreover, increasing the number of competent bilingual employees can have a significant positive effect on the project. In addition, other highly prevalent languages include Chinese and Arabic, and it is critical to address these areas as well.
Services Monitoring
A thorough analysis/monitoring of the provided services is critical to identify the most pressing areas of concern for patients with LEP. According to the research, most problems generally occur in documentation and patient communication (Martinez et al., 2021). Within the assessment framework, these obstacles can be mitigated by introducing a quality-oriented monitoring approach that identifies flaws based on the readmission rate of LEP patients (Martinez et al., 2021). Surveys and feedback are critical in this context because they reveal why precisely patients with LEP have to contact the hospital for the second time. Consequently, the hospital should monitor the identified areas of concern and eliminate emerging problems.
References
Herzberg, E. M., Barrero-Castillero, A., & Matute, J. D. (2022). The healing power of language: Caring for patients with limited English proficiency and COVID-19. Pediatric Research, 91(3), 526-528.
Martinez, E. M., Carr, D. T., Mullan, P. C., Rogers, L. E., Howlett-Holley, W. L., McGehee, C. A.,… & Godambe, S. A. (2021). Improving equity of care for patients with limited English proficiency using quality improvement methodology. Pediatric Quality & Safety, 6(6).
Massachusetts General Hospital. (n.d.). About Massachusetts General Hospital. Web.
Pinto Taylor, E., Mulenos, A., Chatterjee, A., & Talwalkar, J. S. (2019). Partnering with interpreter services: Standardized patient cases to improve communication with limited English proficiency patients. MedEdPORTAL, 15, 10826.
SWOT alternative: SCOPE Situational Analysis. (n.d.). Get2Growth. Web.