A comprehensive strategic plan has been devised for the unified
Health Information Management (HIM) department of Gateway
Healthcare Systems. The process of developing the strategic plan
was extremely insightful and engaging. It made me realize the
important role that a competent and dedicated project management
team plays in order to drive a project towards its success. In the
context of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), the role of well-
functional project management is imperative. It can serve as a critical
element that can contribute to the success of the M&A process
(Hurta et al., 2017). The Gateway Healthcare Systems is the result of
the merger of three distinctive health care entities including St
Catherine’s Medical Center, St Luke’s Hospital and Hickman
Community Hospital. Thus, the role and relevance of project
management are vital.
In the specific health care context, it has been identified that each of
the health care facilities had several shortcomings and flaws that
adversely affected their respective HIM departments. Some of the
main areas of concern included lack of leadership or poor leadership
in the HIM setting, the lack of standardized practices and protocols,
poor cultural diversity and non-compliance concerns. In order to
ensure that the merger was carried out at an integrated level, initially,
the mission, and the values of the facilities, were unified so that they
could focus on the shared goals and objectives while operating in the
health care landscape. The next stage of the strategic plan was the
identification of the available resources that the staff members were
able to access. After identifying the loopholes that existed in the
health care setting, such as poor cultural diversity and non-
compliance to HIPAA standards and guidelines, a training plan was
designed. For the purpose of measuring the overall effectiveness of
the training program, the chief tools that were introduced include the
Kirkpatrick model and the survey method.
The role of the HIM leaders was highly valuable to progress towards
the creation of an effective and unified HIM department. The leaders
played an instrumental role in playing a proactive role and taking
control of the vision of Gateway Healthcare Systems, and creating a
competent and functional HIM department. In order to progress
towards a strategic plan, it is vital to give due importance to the
competencies and capabilities of the project management manager
(Irfan et al., 2021). In the context of the Gateway Healthcare
Systems, the foresight, initiative-taking ability and dedication of the
HIM manager has been vital while making the strategic plan for the
unified HIM department.
References
Hurta, H., Jazouli, A., Koplyay, T., & Motaghi, H. (2017). Mergers and
acquisitions from the perspective of project management.
Polish
Journal of Management Studies
,
15
.
Irfan, M., Khan, S. Z., Hassan, N., Hassan, M., Habib, M., Khan, S., &
Khan, H. H. (2021). Role of project planning and project manager
competencies on public sector project success.
Sustainability
,
13
(3),
1421.
