Nursing Leadership and Management- Executive Summary

Nursing Leadership and Management- Executive Summary

Quality improvement initiatives aim to better the safety and quality of services delivered in healthcare facilities. This paper identifies a quality improvement initiative and evaluates its purpose. Accordingly, it identifies the target population, merits of the initiative, and interprofessional collaboration and justifies budget allocation. Furthermore, the basis for evaluating the quality improvement initiative is discussed.

Purpose of the Quality Improvement Initiative.

The proposed quality improvement initiative is introducing an electronic health record (EHR) system. The introduction of the electronic health record system aims to improve documentation at the health care facility and improve the quality of services (King et al., 2020). The healthcare facility uses the traditional manual paperwork system. This system is time-consuming and does not guarantee patient information security, privacy, and confidentiality. Furthermore, it does not allow ease of exchange of permissible patient information between health care providers. Therefore, this limits the potential for interprofessional collaboration in the decision-making process regarding treatment plans.

Nonetheless, the proposed EHR system will automate the documentation services. Physicians will capture patients’ details electronically, and data security will be guaranteed through passwords and encryptions (King et al., 2020). Physicians will be able to exchange information, which will enable interprofessional collaboration in decision-making. Therefore, the proposed EHR system will improve documentation and improve the quality of healthcare services.

Target Population

The quality improvement initiative will target outpatients, inpatients, and healthcare providers. The details of all patients visiting the healthcare facility will be captured electronically by the EHR system. The data will be secured to facilitate effective follow-up of past medical history when the patients are readmitted or during subsequent visits. All healthcare providers, including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory technicians, and dieticians, will benefit from the EHR system. When the EHR system captures data, each healthcare provider will have varied access to this information. Each healthcare provider will have a unique username and password to ensure data security and promote accountability.

Benefits of the Quality Improvement Initiative

According to Baumann et al. (2018), EHR systems promote automated and accurate data. The EHR system ensures data accuracy by eliminating errors caused by illegible handwriting experienced with the current paperwork system (Baumann et al., 2018). Furthermore, the EHR system allows real-time modification of patient information and provides accurate, updated patient information (Fragidis & Chatzoglou, 2018). The EHR system also improved the quality of healthcare services. It enables the identification of drug interactions and patient allergies. Accordingly, this helps to avert side effects and adverse drug events. Also, the information contained in the EHR can enable the physician to pick the most suitable empirical treatment plan based on the past treatment patterns of the patients (Kharrazi et al., 2018). Quality of care is also improved by allowing the exchange of information among healthcare providers. Ultimately, this promotes interprofessional collaboration in the decision-making process. It can facilitate evidence-based practice where the best treatment plan is selected.

The EHR system ensures that protected health information is secured. Security will guarantee compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (Moore & Frye, 2019). Security is achieved by features such as passwords and encryption. EHR systems can increase the hospital’s revenue collection. It contains billing tools that accurately capture all patient services and charges (King et al., 2020). Accuracy of billings ensures timely reimbursements by health insurance companies. Furthermore, the successful implementation of a certified EHR system warrants monetary incentives from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (Kharrazi et al., 2018). As a result, this will increase the hospital’s revenue significantly.

Interprofessional Collaboration

The implementation of the proposed EHR system requires interprofessional collaboration. Key team members include healthcare providers, the project manager, application analysts, application developers, and the quality assurance engineer (Vant, 2018). The project manager works in concert with the vendor to ensure that the best-certified EHR system is delivered. Furthermore, the project manager collaborates with healthcare providers to ensure that objectives are fulfilled during the implementation process. The project manager should organize regular training through various phases of the implementation process (van Rooden et al., 2021). An application analyst identifies the hospital’s unique needs and avails them to the developer.

The application developer ensures that relevant applications that fulfill the requirements of each department are created. Similarly, the quality test engineer ensures that the installation was done appropriately and that the application performs as intended (van Rooden et al., 2021). Other details include security features and the capacity of users. Healthcare providers should collaborate with application developers, quality test engineers, and project managers to ensure that they receive pertinent training on using the certified EHR system.

Cost or Budget Justification

The budget for implementing the certified EHR system covers costs related to the acquisition of software, hardware, maintenance, and training of staff. The cost breakdown takes into consideration the six physicians at the hospital. The approximations are based on the findings by Shestel (2020). Acquisition and maintenance of hardware: approximately $65,390. Software acquisition and maintenance: approximately $91,000. Network: approximately $32,850, Staff training: approximately $7,300 Project team: approximately $58,000. The total cost is approximately $254,540 during the first year of implementation.

Evaluation of the Quality Improvement Initiative

The EHR system will be evaluated based on various aspects. The first aspect is the automation and accuracy of documentation. It is expected that the EHR system will significantly reduce documentation errors and that there will be ease of access to information (King et al., 2020). The second aspect is quality of care as indicated by evidence-based practice. The EHR system will promote interprofessional collaboration by sharing information and ensuring a collaborative decision-making process. The quality-of-service delivery will increase, elevating patients’ satisfaction levels with service delivery, increasing recovery rates, and reducing hospital stays. The hospital’s revenue is expected to increase after implementing the EHR system. This is from accurate billings, timely reimbursements, and monetary incentives.

The evaluation will also focus on compliance with the HIPAA Act and Meaningful Use Guidelines. HIPAA requires security for protected patient information, whereas Meaningful Use requires certified EHR systems by eligible hospitals (Rathert et al., 2019). Furthermore, feedback from the healthcare providers will be essential to determine the impact of the EHR on the facility.

References

Baumann, L. A., Baker, J., & Elshaug, A. G. (2018). The Impact of Electronic Health Record Systems on Clinical Documentation Times: A Systematic Review. Health Policy, 122(8), 827–836. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthpol.2018.05.014

Fragidis, L. L., & Chatzoglou, P. D. (2018). Implementation of a Nationwide Electronic Health Record (EHR): The International Experience in 13 Countries. International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, 31(2), 116–130. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJHCQA-09-2016-0136

Kharrazi, H., Gonzalez, C. P., Lowe, K. B., Huerta, T. R., & Ford, E. W. (2018). Forecasting the Maturation of Electronic Health Record Functions Among US Hospitals: Retrospective Analysis and Predictive Model. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 20(8), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.2196/10458

King, K., Ford, D., Haschker, M., Harvey, J., Kruis, R., & McElligott, J. (2020). Clinical and Technical Considerations of an Open-Access Telehealth Network in South Carolina: Definition and Deployment. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(5). https://doi.org/10.2196/17348

Moore, W., & Frye, S. (2019). Review of HIPAA, Part 1: History, Protected Health Information, and Privacy and Security Rules. Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology, 47(4), 269–272. https://doi.org/10.2967/JNMT.119.227819

Rathert, C., Porter, T. H., Mittler, J. N., & Fleig-Palmer, M. (2019). Seven Years after Meaningful Use: Physicians’ and Nurses’ Experiences with Electronic Health Records. Health Care Management Review, 44(1), 30–40. https://doi.org/10.1097/HMR.0000000000000168

Shestel, A. (2020). The Cost of Implementing an EHR System. https://belitsoft.com/custom-application-development-services/healthcare-software-development/ehr-implementation

van Rooden, S. M., Aspevall, O., Carrara, E., Gubbels, S., Johansson, A., Lucet, J. C., Mookerjee, S., Palacios-Baena, Z. R., Presterl, E., Tacconelli, E., Abbas, M., Behnke, M., Gastmeier, P., & van Mourik, M. S. M. (2021). Governance Aspects of Large-Scale Implementation of Automated Surveillance of Healthcare-Associated Infections. Clinical Microbiology and Infection, 27, S20–S28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmi.2021.02.026

Vant, A. (2018). Four Crucial Members of an EHR Implementation Team. https://www.ehrinpractice.com/four-crucial-members-of-an-ehr-implementation-team-154.html

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In this assignment, you will propose a quality improvement initiative from your place of employment (hospital) that could be implemented if approved. Assume you are presenting this program to the board for approval of funding. Write an executive summary (750-1,000 words) to present to the board, from which the board will decide to fund your program or project. Include the following:

Nursing Leadership and Management- Executive Summary

The purpose of the quality improvement initiative.

The target population or audience.

The benefits of the quality improvement initiative.

The interprofessional collaboration that would be required to implement the quality improvement initiative.

The cost or budget justification.

The basis upon which the quality improvement initiative will be evaluated.