You are the health care administrator for a physician practice with five primary care physicians.

Consider the following scenario:

You are the health care administrator for a physician practice with five primary care physicians. Your practice has an existing electronic health record (EHR) system, which has been in place for three years. The EHR system has some existing functionalities to support the reporting of quality measures to Medicare to comply with public reporting requirements. However, there are some new requirements that require your practice to upgrade the EHR system’s software. To meet Medicare deadlines, this project will need to be completed within the next 12 months within a budget of $20,000.

For this Assignment, reflect on the scenario presented. Think about what considerations a health care administrator should keep in mind to track the resources needed for this project. Reflect on what types of tools explored this week will best support the health care administrator for the project detailed in the scenario.

The Assignment (3–5 pages, not including the Gantt Chart, Activity Cost Estimates, and Work Breakdown Structure templates): 5 pages include the paper and the templates

• Prepare a Gantt chart (including time and activities).
• Prepare a budget (including dollar amounts).
• Explain how you as a current or future health care      administrator might use the Gantt chart and budget that you created to      assess the project in the scenario presented. Be specific and provide      examples.
• Complete the Work Breakdown Structure template. Explain      how you would break down the activities and why.

Start of my paper:  

Healthcare administrators’ responsibilities may vary depending on the type of organization. However, an administrator for a physician’s practice performs management tasks for the physician’s practice. In my opinion, an administrator is in an authoritative position and can delegate functions to deal with daily personnel issues, patient complaints, and cost-saving measures. During the 12 months with a budget of $20,000, a healthcare administrator’s primary focus is enhancing and developing quality measures for the existing functions of an EHR system. Jeff Green (2021) implemented and developed tools for setting budgets for EHR systems. Some of his tools include:

·         Justifying the cost of implementing EHR

·         Consider the benefits of EHR use

·         Compile your EHR costs

·         Compile costs into a complete EHR budget

·         Pricing of popular EHR systems

The tools implemented have shown that the EHR (Electronic Health Record) system is cost-effective for implementing an electronic version of the patient’s medical history. More importantly, the electronic version provides management and clinical data and is mainly maintained by providers and administrators over time. In addition, the key implementation of the EHR system provides healthcare organizations and providers with the potential to improve their healthcare and administrative operations (Green, J., 2021)

Team Conflict & Decision Making

A. Team Conflict & Decision Making

i. Conflict Code of Conduct

• Outline the expected code of conduct when team members experience disagreements about the project, processes, or interpersonal differences.

ii. Initial Conflict & Conflict Escalation

• Detail the steps that team members are expected to follow in order to work through an initial conflict.

• Outline escalation procedures for team members to follow if initial conflicts cannot be resolved, including individuals who will have ruling and authoritative decisions in the conflict (e.g., team leader, mentor*, etc.). 

*If this individual is external to the team, their signature is also required to acknowledge they understand their role as an impartial judge within a conflict situation. 

iii. Decision-Making

• Outline how the team plans to come to an agreed upon decision.

• Outline procedures to follow when sub-groups (i.e., not including all team members) make project decisions. 

• Detail what the team will do when one or two team members have a different view of a decision.

• Detail the steps the team will take if a decision cannot be reached including individuals who will have ruling authority in a final decision (e.g., team leader, mentor*, etc.). 

*If this individual is external to the team, their signature is also required to acknowledge they understand their role as an impartial judge within a decision-making situation.

Communication, collaboration and conflict management

Professionalism can be difficult to maintain during interpersonal communication that involves a major conflict. The ability to manage the conflict and continually work to improve team communication and collaboration is a valuable skill for all health care managers.

Consider the following scenario:

The patient access staff at an internal medicine practice are discussing a significant trend of no-show and cancellation appointments. One receptionist stated that she was told by the coordinator to never schedule patients who call for same-day appointments unless it is an emergency, such as medication reactions, so patients would value their appointments and discourage them from not showing up or canceling. The coordinator also indicated that the change was approved by the CEO. A receptionist became emotional and stated, “This is not right. We are here to help patients. Your plan does not seem to be working, and I think we should try something else.”

The coordinator then asked the staff how the patient recall list and the confirmation of appointments were managed. At this point, another receptionist indicated she thought the patient contact software was not working correctly. It was displaying confirmation icons for scheduled patients, but a few patients called to confirm their appointments on their own. She said, “We need to do something about this now and stop talking about it. I reported my suspicion several times to management, but nothing was checked. I think patients calling to confirm their appointments is proof that the software does not work correctly.”

The coordinator continued to ignore the direct statements of the staff. Instead, she suggested she would study the relationship between patient gender, age, payer, and the date appointments were set to determine if there were any patterns. “It’s about time you become involved in the solution,” a scheduler said. “Okay,” the coordinator said, “I am trying to solve this dilemma. We will accomplish nothing by complaining.” The first receptionist replied, “We will never solve the problem if you do not process our input.”

The coordinator smiled politely and nodded in agreement. In addition, everyone agreed that the data she would study could be helpful as a starting point. The coordinator further indicated she would have IT investigate issues with the patient contact software. A few days later, the coordinator met with all the staff and shared her findings. Her finding revealed there was no relationship between date scheduled and cancelled appointments or no-shows. She also indicated that IT found 893 patient portal messages unopened. The messages included requests to reschedule and text replies to cancel.

The group developed a consensus to follow the original scheduling protocol, which was patients are scheduled on a first-call basis and the artificial barrier of two weeks was terminated. The coordinator accepted responsibility for the lack of follow-up on patient messages, but then assigned another scheduler the daily task of checking and responding to messages. The coordinator thanked everyone for their feedback, ideas, and support. She quipped, “emotions are okay. Passion should be evident in all of us every day.”

Write a 350- to 700-word paper in which you:

• Describe the quality of communication in the scenario.
• Describe the type of conflict illustrated in the scenario.
• Explain how the defensive climate created by the conflict will affect the team members’ ability to collaborate and communicate in the future.
• Identify strategies the manager could use to resolve the conflict between the team members to create a supportive climate again.
• Identify strategies the manager could use for improving communication and collaboration between the team members in the future.
• Explain how the manager can measure the performance of the team. How can he or she determine if they are progressing or meeting their objectives?

Cite your resources according to APA guidelines.

You live in a community where, during the past year, the voters have chosen to have the town of Eagle’s Nest, Colorado “incorporated.”

You live in a community where, during the past year, the voters have chosen to have the town of Eagle’s Nest, Colorado “incorporated.” There are about 30,000 residents and the town is located in the greater region of a city of 400,000. It is this larger community of which residents formally considered themselves residents. 

Now that the town is incorporated, a newly elected city council has hired a city manager; taxes are now collected; budgets are managed; and public services are provided. The county has offered to assist in establishing an emergency management team and center by providing subject-matter expertise and some limited, temporary (“start-up”) funding. The state is assisting with funds as well, though the precise amount and duration of support is not known at present.

Your community is residential for the most part with perhaps one-third of the residents being military members and their families. The city is also home to some key resources and critical infrastructure. Eagle’s Nest has a large reservoir, a reinforced concrete dam, and water aqueduct traversing the city and providing essential drinking water to the multiple neighboring towns to the west, and crucial agriculture irrigation support to the south. A main railway line bisects the city and is a vital link for coal transport from Wyoming to the nation’s southwestern states. Along the western edge of the city, Interstate-25 connects the northern and southern borders of the state and is the main thoroughfare to all points south. 

The natural threats and hazards are what you would anticipate for city based primarily on the plains of a western state, especially tornadoes, drought and snow and ice storms. Additional threats and vulnerabilities your community must deal with include immigration challenges, increasing drug trafficking, and a rising gang presence.

You recently graduated with your emergency management/homeland security degree and served as a volunteer with the county emergency management office during your last year of school. As Eagle’s Nest begins to institute an emergency operations center and various other capabilities, you and your group members are hired to serve as planners. Yet your first assignment is to research and recommend the communications equipment and capabilities the city will need to acquire.

Assignment Guidelines

Individual Portion

• Address the following in 2–3 pages: 
  • Research and reveal in your report at least five communication tools or capabilities necessary for a functional emergency management center and successful operations. Discuss the following with your group members: 
    • Precisely describe each tool or capability selected. 
    • What challenges exist for acquiring, using, and maintaining this component or capability? 
    • What value does this component or capability add to planned operations? 
    • What degradation will there be to the center and/or operations if the team fails to acquire this component or capability? 
    • What costs are involved with this component or capability?  
  • Remember that costs are not defined only in monetary forms and they may need to be considered well before, during, and after acquisition.  
  • Also think about how purchasing or acquiring one item may compel the acquisition of something else, as well, and factor these needs in too.  

For example, a communication system has no value without the radio frequencies over which it operates. How does a community secure these? How do you avoid overlap with other users? What if you have multiple requirements (for example, the fire department has one, Law Enforcement uses others, emergency medical has another, but there is still additional capability to all talk to each other)? Is there a fee? Does use require a license? Does the license have a fee? What is the fee and do you pay it once, annually, or another way? What laws or regulations must be accommodated (these being other “costs”)? etc.

Group Portion (1)

• Using the Small Group Discussion Area, discuss your findings from the individual portion of this project. 
• As a group, come to a consensus and select at least five of the technologies that were addressed by the individual members. 
  • At least one technology must be selected from each group member.

Create a research report summarizing your assessment findings on your chosen health policy issue.

Imagine that you are a legislative consultant hired to assess the influence of stakeholders and interest groups on a health policy issue. Your supervisor has asked that you present your assessment findings to the senior leadership of your organization to inform their decisions on how best to approach their intended organization-wide position statement regarding this issue.

As a first step, you will select one of three health policy issues from the Project Two Health Policy Issue Scenarios document. As part of the background study, you will conduct preliminary research about the selected issue and analyze the impact of the selected issue on various stakeholders. This background study and assessment of the selected issue will serve as a foundation for your final presentation. In this assignment, you will essentially analyze the selected health policy issue and describe how it influences the decision-making process in healthcare.

Your research in this Project Two Preparation will be specific to the nonfinancial impact of the selected policy on various stakeholders. In your second Project Two Preparation, which is due in Module Seven, you will explore the financial implications of the selected issues. Together, both of these Project Two Preparation assignments will prepare you for the Project Two submission due in Module Nine.

Prompt

Create a research report summarizing your assessment findings on your chosen health policy issue. This research report will serve as a support document in the Project Two final submission.

You must cite at least three sources to support your claims. You may cite no more than one source from the module resources; all other resources must come from your own research. In other words, you may cite no more than one resource from the Resources section of this module. 

Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:

1. Introduction
   1. Health Policy Issue: Describe your chosen health policy issue in a clear, concise manner. Consider the following guiding questions in your response:
      • Why did you choose this health policy issue for your Project Two work?
      • How might this health policy issue be explained to someone who has never heard of it before?
   2. Key Stakeholders and Interest Groups: Identify three key stakeholders and/or interest groups impacted by your chosen issue. Consider the following guiding questions in your response:
      • Who are the stakeholders and/or interest groups that will be primarily affected by this issue, either positively or negatively?
      • How might vulnerable populations and underserved areas be affected by this issue?
2. Influence on Decision Making
   1. Stakeholder Needs: Describe the nonfinancial needs of the identified three key stakeholders and/or interest groups with respect to your chosen issue. Consider the following guiding questions in your response:
      • How are the nonfinancial needs of the identified stakeholders and/or interest groups affected by the selected issue?
      • How does this issue impact vulnerable populations or underserved areas?
   2. Health Policy Influence: Describe the kinds of nonfinancial influence that the three identified key stakeholders and/or interest groups can have on health policies. Consider the following guiding questions in your response:
      • Which three stakeholders and/or interest groups can have significant nonfinancial influence on the selected issue?
      • Which three stakeholders and/or interest groups have subtle or covert nonfinancial influence on the selected issue?
   3. Benefits and Disadvantages: Describe how the identified three stakeholders and/or interest groups might benefit or be disadvantaged by your chosen issue. Do not include any financially related benefits and disadvantages. Consider the following guiding questions in your response:
      • Which of the identified stakeholders and/or interest groups benefit from this issue?
      • Which of the identified stakeholders and/or interest groups are disadvantaged by this issue?
      • How might those in vulnerable populations or underserved areas be benefited or disadvantaged by this issue, not including financial benefits or disadvantages?
   4. Value Conflict Analysis: Describe the potential value conflicts between identified stakeholders and/or interest groups relating to your chosen issue. Consider the following guiding question in your response:
      • What nonfinancial value conflicts might the identified stakeholders have concerning this issue, and why?

Examining the digital world through the use of sociological theory

Instructions

You are working for a local department store in the Operations Department. You notice that their business practices and use of technology are not up to date. The Human Resources Department does not have adequate computer access and often requires employees to complete some business at home. They also require prospective employees to apply from home. You recognize that not all people have personal computers, and some might be accessing business and personal records from a public computer. There are two prominent sociological theories that can be used to easily examine computer usage for individuals and organizations. Those theories are Conflict Theory and Symbolic Interaction Theory.

At a staff meeting, you and your team are engaged in a discussion about the use of technology on both an individual and organizational level. You cite the digital divide as a major concern. Your store is considering an upgrade in some or all of their technological resources.

Recognizing that you are technologically savvy, your supervisor asks you to generate a visual comparison that considers the use of public computers versus a personal computer. You will rank concepts such as ease of use, time, and comfort in completing tasks, security factors, email management, and safety in conducting business that is typically completed on a computer that may lead someone to experience the digital divide (a difference between groups of people and their use of digital technology). You will also need to consider the sociological theories named above and explain how from a sociological perspective, it would benefit or hinder the store you work in to upgrade their technology.

Your comparison should consider various factors identified below and will illustrate the benefits and some potential limitations of utilizing technology. Your presentation will be presented to your supervisor and other members of the Operations Department in order to determine which, if any, components of the store’s current technological operations will be updated. The visual comparison can be in any engaging format that you select.

For this comparison chart, you are to reflect upon and address the following sets of questions/information.

• Define conflict theory. Fully define key theories and offers excellent description of relationships to technology.
• Define symbolic interaction theory. Fully define key theories and offers excellent description of relationships to technology.
• Discuss how each of these theories would explain the use of technology and the development of the digital world we now live.
• Consider multiple ways that society has changed in the past several decades and what contributed to that change. 
• Fully describes societal changes and technological growth with supporting research. Strong correlations made.
• Provide examples of technological growth and change over the past several decades.
• Make direct correlations between the technologies that exist and the changes that have occurred at the organizational and societal levels in the past several decades.
• Define digital divide.
• Consider factors that create the digital divide, such as access to technology, socioeconomic status, age, personal interest, location of residence, etc.Thoroughly define digital divide, and clearly identifiy factors with strong supporting evidence.
• Based upon factors that cause the digital divide, suggest ways that this divide can be combated. Includes Fully developed suggestions to counter digital divide and application of theoretical perspectives with supported details.
• How does the digital divide apply to the store that you work in for this scenario?
• Which theoretical perspective can best be applied to your store in the above scenario to help explain and counter the impacts of the digital divide?

Nursing models in the work place

Reflect on the nursing care model used in your organization. Post its name and a description of it by answering the following questions:

• What are some advantages and disadvantages of using your specified nursing care model in your organizational structure?
• Are there any exceptions to following the nursing care model? If yes, describe when those occur and how they are managed. Is it effective?
• Do you think that the nursing care model used in your organization is effective in assisting nurses to deliver high quality care? Please explain your answer.
• If it is not effective, please give a suggestion of a nursing care model that would be more beneficial to the organization.

Discuss the event, and then discuss which of the CIA (confidentiality, integrity, and availability) principles were violated and specifically how they were violated.  

While we may not have had much time together discussing security, this probably reminded you of events in your life. Think about a time when you witnessed or were part of a “breach” in security. This might be a specific attack against just you, as part of a larger breach, such as your identity being stolen during a newsworthy event, or an arbitrary event from the news you choose to analyze. Discuss the event, and then discuss which of the CIA (confidentiality, integrity, and availability) principles were violated and specifically how they were violated.  

For the response to suggest an improvement or fix that might have prevented this principle violation.  

Parameters 

• Initial responses 
  • Posts should be 250 to 300 words in length
  • Must include at least one source outside of your textbook, and it should be included in the reference list at the end of the post
  • All sources should be used in the content of the post using APA format
• Peer responses 
  • Responses should be 100 to 150 words or more
  • Responses must be substantive and continue learning (avoid a simple “good,” “bad,” or “I agree”)
  • Attempt to find a source to support your follow-up responses 
  • For the response to suggest an improvement or fix that might have prevented this principle violation.  

A key concept in economics and finance is the time value of money.

A key concept in economics and finance is the time value of money. 

Most investment decisions, like buying a house, paying for your education, or starting a business, involve making a payment up front in order to earn a return later. (You pay money out at one or more points in time and later receive your benefits based on the investment’s agreement.)

Additionally, economic factors such as supply and demand can play an important role in your investment process. If there is a huge supply of houses available in a neighborhood you like, housing prices in that neighborhood may go down due to a lack of current demands.

Therefore, you as the buyer have more power and may be able to make an offer that is lower than the initial asking price. Alternatively, in a neighborhood that is very much in demand and low in available housing, the housing prices may be higher, and you may need to offer to pay more to compete with other offers for a home there.

Decisions in investments can end in a variety of ways. Applying your problem solving skill and critical thinking strategies can help you successfully analyze opportunities to bring the best benefits for your efforts. Adjusting for the time value of money lets you calculate if the rewards are worth the wait so that you can arrive at an informed decision before you commit your money.

In this week’s discussion: 

Identify an investment decision that you or someone else has made. (This should be for goods or services for which one or more payments were made in order to receive increased benefits from those goods or services at a later time.)

• How do you think the concept of supply and demand impacted the investment decision?
   
• Now that you understand the time value of money, how would you use your problem solving skill (especially critical thinking strategies) to rethink the decision in the future?

How ethical are slotting fees?

Ethical Dilemma

Although buried by mass customization and a proliferation of new products of numerous sizes and variations, grocery chains continue to seek to maximize payoff from their layout. Their layout includes a marketable commodity—shelf space—and they charge for it. This charge is known as a slotting fee . Recent estimates are that food manufacturers now spend some 13% of sales on trade promotions, which is paid to grocers to get them to promote and discount the manufacturer’s products. A portion of these fees is for slotting, but slotting fees drive up the manufacturer’s cost. They also put the small company with a new product at a disadvantage because small companies with limited resources may be squeezed out of the marketplace. Slotting fees may also mean that customers may no longer be able to fi nd the special local brand. 

How ethical are slotting fees?