solved Peer# 1 Directional strategies, or mission, vision, values, and strategic

Peer# 1
Directional strategies, or mission, vision, values, and strategic goals, guide strategists in making key organizational decisions (Ginter, 2013). The organization’s distinctive purpose is captured in its mission, while the vision provides an image of what the organization will achieve when accomplishing the mission (Ginter, 2013). Values are the guiding principles that employees follow when achieving the mission and vision without comprise (Ginter, 2013). An organization’s mission, vision, and values together set the foundation for the strategic direction of the company. The mission provides the basis for judging the success of an organization and its programs, making sure that everyone is on the right track working towards the right goals (Ahmed, 2019). Since the organization’s vision highlights where the organization wants to be in the future, it gives employees a goal to work toward. Mission and vision statements help businesses to outline performance standards and metrics based on the goals they want to achieve. They also provide employees with a specific goal to attain, promoting efficiency and productivity (Ahmed, 2019).

           An example of a mission and vision statement of an organization that I found particularly powerful is from the Alzheimer’s Association. The mission that guides this organization in their everyday work is “to eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health” (Alzheimer’s Association, n.d.). The future that the organization is working towards is embodied in their vision statement “a world without Alzheimer’s disease” (Alzheimer’s Association, n.d.). The Alzheimer’s Associations holds itself to the following values: integrity, commitment to excellence, inclusiveness, diversity, consumer focus, and accountability (Alzheimer’s Association, n.d.). After reading through these statements and values, I think it is clear to see the strategic direction that is outlined for this organization. The Association is advancing research, enhancing care, and promoting brain health as ways to eliminate Alzheimer’s, while all employees follow the core values in all they do.
Peer# 2

A mission statement communicates the organization’s reason for being, and how it aims to serve its key stakeholders. Customers, employees, and investors are the stakeholders most often emphasized, but other stakeholders like government or communities (i.e., in the form of social or environmental impact) can also be discussed. Mission statements are often longer than vision statements. Sometimes mission statements also include a summation of the firm’s values. Values are the beliefs of an individual or group, and in this case the organization, in which they are emotionally invested. In other words, mission statement of an organization represents who they are, what they value. Vision statement represents, what they want to become. Strategy represents, how they will achieve vision and goals and objectives represents what they gauge their degree of success. The organization I work at is a very religious and devotional organization. The mission statement of Loma Linda University health is to continue the teaching and healing ministry of Jesus Christ. We are committed “To make man whole,” in a setting of advancing medical science and providing a stimulating clinical and research environment for the education of physicians, nurses and other health professionals. Vision statement is to, “Transforming lives through education, healthcare and research. This organization brings in a very devotional aspect of patinet care and treat everyone with respect and with the goals of teaching and healing.

Peer# 3

I believe the role of the healthcare administrator has evolved because healthcare is so unpredictable and involves caring for people who are sick and at a vulnerable time in their lives. Administrators have to continuously change and adapt to new standards of patient care, infection control, research developments and government regulations. Healthcare administrators need to have a diverse knowledge base that includes the management of clinical services (patient care), accounting, finance, human resources, and so much more. They also need to be up to date on ever changing government regulations and requirements such as the ACA and HIPAA.

Some current challenges healthcare administrators are faced with include the need change and adapt to a value-based payment model, which ties quality of patient care Medicare and Medicaid payment. They also must adopt and adapt to the use of technology. Not only in direct patient care settings (robotics, telemedicine), but also in electronic health records. With electronic health records comes the need to implement cybersecurity measures and HIPAA laws.
COVID-19 created new challenges for administrators such as PPE and other supply shortages, loss of revenue due to cancelled elective procedures, higher costs in long-term care for critically ill uninsured or underinsured patients, staffing shortages and sheer lack of physical space to accommodate the influx of sick people.
Policies and procedures are important in healthcare administration because they provide guidelines and the foundation for providing safe, effective, evidence-based quality care, while ensuring compliance with government regulations and standards of clinical practice. They are a way to hold management and staff accountable. The institution where I work is subject to audits and site visits from state, county, and independent government oversight committees. They inspect every aspect of the medical care provided. From patient access to care, healthcare environment to nursing and provider performance and administrative operations. While the weeks leading up to the visits are nerve wracking, I always learn a lot from the observations, proficiencies and deficiencies that are found. It gives us the opportunity look at how we manage our day-to-day operations, and how we are not always in compliance and what steps we need to take to get there.
 Technology is the driving force behind most of the changes taking place in today’s world. Not only has technology had an impact on the clinical side of healthcare, but it has also significantly changed the field of healthcare management (University of Southern California, 2020). Healthcare administration focuses on creating transparency, reducing risk, innovating healthcare, and cultivating relationships between patients and clinicians (University of Southern California, 2020). Thanks to technology, electronic medical records address all these issues, as well as healthcare cost, value, and access. New software systems have streamlined processes for healthcare administrators, including solutions for compliance, customer service, claims processing, marketing patient retentions, and care management (University of Southern California, 2020). As technology continues to evolve, so will the role of healthcare administrators.
Peer# 4

Technology is the driving force behind most of the changes taking place in today’s world. Not only has technology had an impact on the clinical side of healthcare, but it has also significantly changed the field of healthcare management (University of Southern California, 2020). Healthcare administration focuses on creating transparency, reducing risk, innovating healthcare, and cultivating relationships between patients and clinicians (University of Southern California, 2020). Thanks to technology, electronic medical records address all these issues, as well as healthcare cost, value, and access. New software systems have streamlined processes for healthcare administrators, including solutions for compliance, customer service, claims processing, marketing patient retentions, and care management (University of Southern California, 2020). As technology continues to evolve, so will the role of healthcare administrators.
           Policies and procedures are used to drive administrative and clinical decisions within organizations because policies provide board guidelines that are used to create specific procedures (Langabeer & Helton, 2016). The purpose of healthcare policy and procedures is to communicate to employees the desired outcomes of the organizations (Robinson, 2016). In the healthcare environment, policies should set the foundation for the delivery of safe and cost-effective quality care (Robinson, 2016). According to Robinson (2016), hospital policies and procedures establish a high degree of understanding, cooperation, efficiency, and unity among employees at the hospital.