Introduction
Healthcare organizations today are increasingly faced with the demands of achieving performance benchmarks. These benchmarks are made and enforced by various government laws and policies at community, state, and federal levels (Suryadevara, 2020). This report will assess current organizational or interprofessional team performance using an actual dashboard from a professional practice setting within the nursing domain. It will identify metrics not meeting the prescribed benchmarks to review the implications of benchmark underperformance as well as advocate for ethical approaches to resolve this issue through sustainable actions. A mid-sized community hospital located in a suburban area is under evaluation. It has 200 beds and offers emergency care, surgery procedures, obstetrics, and chronic disease management. For instance, the population served is diverse, containing people from different ethnicities and socio-economic strata. It has been given recommendable reviews that it delivers high-quality patient-centered care. It has also been said that it is accessible and affordable to all members of the society.
It is clear from this dashboard, selected in relation to patient outcomes, regulatory compliance, and operational efficiency about key performance indicators (KPIs), that the selected dashboard makes a good selection. In reviewing it, I can see that several of these metrics do not meet the prescribed benchmarks established by local, state, or federal healthcare laws and policies (Giles et al., 2020). For example, the hospital failed to meet central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), a key metric for preventing healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). However, despite using evidence-based practices and infection control protocols, the rate of CLABSIs at this facility is currently high. It is actually higher than the benchmark set by the CDC and CMS. Further, there are some concerns over suboptimal compliance with medication reconciliation protocols, as highlighted on the dashboard. This metric is governed by federal regulations. These regulations are put in place to ensure patient safety and continuity of care during transitions. Failure by this hospital to achieve its benchmark regarding medication reconciliation may jeopardize patients’ well-being. It may also render it liable for administrative penalties.
The resulting implications for not meeting the targeted benchmarks are more than simply noncompliance with the laws and fines. For example, with CLABSIs, continuous underperformance puts patient safety at risk as well as quality of care, leading to increased rates of morbidity; higher mortality figures could mean increased medical costs. In addition, a high rate of infections at an institution can lead to bad press that can spoil its reputation and shake public trust in it. Operationally speaking, funds directed toward managing HAIs, as well as addressing regulatory gaps, are resources that should otherwise have been devoted to taking care of patients or making strategic investments (Qahtan et al., 2022). Furthermore, there may be a decrease in staffing levels coupled with escalated workload following infection control measures, leading to staff burnout and turnover, thereby worsening organizational challenges.
To deal with the recognized areas where performance is inadequate, it is crucial that specific measures be taken and strategic initiatives implemented. For example, to curb HAIs and lower CLABSI rates, it can assist when infection prevention and control routines are improved through training of the workers, strict observance of hand hygiene procedures, and the development of surveillance systems (Yelnikova & Kwilinski, 2020). In the same manner, transforming medication reconciliation processes necessitates team efforts between different departments in the health care system, standardizing work process flows, and adopting EHR systems that can aid in obtaining accurate medication histories and verifying medical orders. Sustainable improvement will only be achieved if frontline staff, alongside quality improvement teams, engage nursing leadership for root cause analysis as well as performance enhancement projects.
The group of stakeholders that sought to address benchmark underperformance includes hospital managers, heads of departments, infection control nurses, nursing supervisors, and junior staff. These stakeholders should perceive the ethical necessity of putting patients’ safety and quality care at the forefront. The perception may involve ethical behaviors such as resource allocation for training and development of staff, which results in improved benchmark performance; investment in technological infrastructure to support infection control processes; and transparency and accountability through regular performance reviews and feedback sessions. Persistence towards an improvement culture with continuous quality improvement and evidence-based practices is also referred to as sustainable activities. They may also encourage elasticity and adaptability of their organizations through this process, which helps in complex healthcare situations that are characterized by ethical principles and promote organizational learning within these institutions.
To conclude, its important to note that HAI reduction and medication reconciliation processes for the organization have some major gaps. These impairments result in numerous problems such as risks on patients’ lives, regulatory and statutory risks, reputation related risks in addition to operational ineffectiveness. However, identification of areas for change advocacy of business practices that are ethical and sustainable could enable this company deal with these challenges in advance hence improve the quality of care given by the enterprise. Jointly with all stakeholders taking part in continuous improvement efforts, the healthcare provider can continuously deliver high-quality services that are patient-centered and comply with legislation while also incorporating safety culture into its operations.
References
Giles-Corti, B., Lowe, M., & Arundel, J. (2020). Achieving the SDGs: Evaluating indicators to use to benchmark and monitor progress towards creating healthy and sustainable cities. Health Policy, 124(6), 581-590. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016885101830441X
Qahttan, S., Sharif, K. Y., Zaidan, A. A., Alsatar, H. A., Albahri, O. S., Zaidan, B. B., … & Mohammed, R. T. (2022). Novel multi-security and privacy benchmarking framework for blockchain-based IoT healthcare industry 4.0 systems. IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, 18(9), 6415-6423. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/9693264
Suryadevara, C. K. (2020). TOWARDS PERSONALIZED HEALTHCARE INTELLIGENT MEDICATION RECOMMENDATION SYSTEM. IEJRD-International Multidisciplinary Journal, 5(9), 16. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Chaitanya-Suryadevara/publication/374445762_TOWARDS_PERSONALIZED_HEALTHCARE_-AN_INTELLIGENT_MEDICATION_RECOMMENDATION_SYSTEM/links/651e134cfc5c2a0c3bb610f1/TOWARDS-PERSONALIZED-HEALTHCARE-AN-INTELLIGENT-MEDICATION-RECOMMENDATION-SYSTEM.pdf
Yelnikova, Y. V., & Kwilinski, A. (2020). Impact-investing in healthcare in terms of the new socially responsible state investment policy. https://armgpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/5_2.pdf
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