Nursing Environment
Modern Care hospital is a hospital that specializes in chiropractic services. The hospital is renowned for its quality care. It is also operating a manual patient records system. However, due to competition from other hospitals and constant complaints from patients about missing files, the hospital decided to automate its file storage system. In particular, the hospital purchased an electronic health records system. The hospital experienced tremendous changes after implementing the EHR system. In addition to making patients’ records management a simple task, the EHR system reduced mistakes that often result to repeat testing ( Czaja et al., 2015 ). These benefits notwithstanding, the hospital is currently experiencing some notable challenges in so far as the EHR system is concerned. Nurses are complaining that the system is slow and it has interoperability and compatibility issues which is affecting their ability to manage patients quickly efficiently. In summary, the hospital is currently experiencing security and human interaction challenges that are caused by the EHR system and there is need to solve the problem to ensure efficiency in service delivery.
Nursing Change Theory
The current situation at Modern Care hospital warrants change. Lewin’s Change Theory is the most appropriate theory for this situation. The theory is based on three major concepts. The first concept is driving forces (Batras et al., 2016). In this case, the ineffectiveness of the automated patient records system is the driving force behind the need for change. The second concept is restraining forces. These forces bring a false sense of hope even when things are falling out of hand. The third concept is equilibrium. Once the restraining forces equal the driving forces, the status quo is maintained, and no change occurs. Lewin’s Change Theory proposes three processes that can help a healthcare institution to implement change amidst restraining forces. The first process is unfreezing. In this process, people who are opposed to change are approached respectfully and educated on the importance of accepting change. The best way to unfreeze a situation is to increase the driving forces and reduce the restraining forces. Once there is an imbalance, the individuals opposed to change will see the need to adopt a new way of doing things. The second process is the real change. Once opposition to change has been neutralized, the hospital is free to effect change. The last process is refreezing. This process helps to cement the new system of doing things and to create and institutionalize standard operating procedures.
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How to Implement Change
The Modern Care Hospital will follow Lewin’s Change Theory to the letter when implementing Change. Given that the EHR system has not been in operation for long, the hospital’s management should investigate the reason behind its ineffectiveness. There are two potential reasons why the nurses may find it difficult to operate the system. Either, the system is defective, or the nurses do not have adequate training to handle the HER ( Green et al., 2015 ). Most likely, the main problem is lack of adequate training for both the Information Technology department and the nurses. Given that the nurses were used to the manual system, they may deliberately sabotage the automated system to render it ineffective.
In this case, the nurses and the IT department are the resistance to change. To neutralize this resistance, the management should hold a meeting with all the staff to discuss the issues raised in regard tom the functionality of the EHR system ( Iren & Wagner, 2018 ). Since the management is not ready to throw away a system it spent a lot implementing, the nurses will be asked to mention what they would like the system to do and some of the difficulties they encounter while using the system. The management should contact the vendor and ask for consultants who will train the Staff and the IT experts on the functions of the system.
Evaluation
The effectiveness of the implementation plan can be evaluated over six months. For instance, in the first three months, every user of the EHR system should be capable of handling tasks using the HER system without any problems or complaints. In a span of six months, both the nurses and the hospital’s IT experts should be able to troubleshoot the EHR system whenever compatibility and interoperability issues are presented.
Timeline
10 th March to 17 th March – Establish the root of the problem and hold a meeting with the affected parties.
20 th March to 22 nd March – Contact the EHR system vendor to seek for a lasting solution to the problem.
24 th March to 22 nd May – Conduct the first stage of training
23 rd May to 23 rd July – Conduct the second phase of training
23 rd May to 23 rd October – Evaluate the effect of the change process.
1 st November - establish standard working procedures.
Reflection
The changes recommended in this essay are not only restricted to Modern care Hospital. Instead, they can be applied in any hospice setting. In this modern age, hospitals are automating most of their functions to not only stay abreast of the times but to also enhance the quality of care they provide. Moreover, resistance to change is a universal problem. When people feel comfortable with the way they operate, they rarely see the need for change. Additionally, convincing them to accept change can be a herculean task. However, for the sake of the patients, change is mandatory. Hence, the implementation proposals presented in this essay such as retraining the nurses and the IT department can be applied in any healthcare setting.
References
Batras, D., Duff, C., & Smith, B. J. (2016). Organizational change theory: implications for health promotion practice . Health Promotion International , 231–241.
Czaja, S. J., Zarcadoolas, C., Vaughon, W. L., Lee, C. C., Rockoff, M. L., & Levy, J. (2014). The Usability of Electronic Personal Health Record Systems for an Underserved Adult Population. Human Factors; The Journal of Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 57 (3), 491-506.
Green, L. A., Potworowski, G., Day, A., May-Gentile, R., Vibbert, D., Maki, B., & Kiesel, L. (2015). Sustaining “Meaningful Use” of Health Information Technology in Low-Resource Practices. Annals of Familly Medicine, 13 (1), 17-22. http://www.annfammed.org/content/13/1/17.short
Iren J., Wagner J., (2018) Leadership and Influencing Change in Nursing. London: University of Regina Press.
