Contemporary Organization Evaluation

Organizations that seek to remain successful, must be ready to evolve and adapt to the environment and circumstances in which they operate. Change within an organization can take many forms and could involve the organization’s culture, technology, procedures, policies, strategy, or structure. In addition, the change could be forced by a shift in the circumstances and environment, or may be planned in advance (Bemker & Schreiner, 2017). Besides that, organizational change can be slow and incremental, or it may be swift and radical in altering the way in which the organization operates. In any case, regardless of the type of change applies, all changes will involve eliminating old ways and adjusting to new ways. Still, it is important to note that for a change to be successful in achieving the desired outcomes in the organization, it must be managed effectively. This could involve anything from crafting a new organizational design to modifying the existing design to affect a small or large number of stakeholders depending on the scope of the change (Snipes, 2016). The present paper offers an evaluation for organizational change that occurred at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center (NY-PH/WCMC).  Contemporary Organization Evaluation Discussion Paper

1. Describe the organization and the change to which it is responding.

The New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center is a medical organization that operates in New York City. The organization engages physicians who are faculty members of Weill Cornell Medical College. The organization offers patient care in primary care and other specialty areas that include HIV/AIDS care, oncology, neurology, and in-vitro fertilization. In addition, the organization leverages the capabilities developed in the college to include medical breakthroughs and advances, medical research, new procedures, and technologies. The medical services offered by the organization are mainly targeted at people from all the five boroughs in New York City and the metropolitan areas. Also, patients are drawn from across the USA and from around the world (Weill Cornell Medicine, 2021a).

Covid-19 epidemic has created a significant concern for the organization. This is especially the case when it is considered that its line of business is providing health care services, so that there is a high likelihood of meeting Covid-19 patients. The virus is very aggressive, and this has caused the health care fraternity to recommend social distancing, personal protective equipment, and hand hygiene as strategies for curtailing the spread of the virus. Towards this end, the organization has opted to change its visitor policies. The previous visitor policy was based on the understanding that patients need social support, and visitors are an instrumental component of that support by showing patients that they are a part of a community. However, the realities of Covid-19 epidemic have forced the organization to only maintain essential personnel, so that not essential services such as visitors are not allowed into the facility so as to curtail the spread of the virus while protecting all stakeholders from being infected or infecting others (Weill Cornell Medicine, 2021b).

The organization’s new visitor policies are targeted at protecting its community. They acknowledge the importance of visitation and caretakers to the recovery and general wellbeing of patients, but justify the new policies as necessary for protecting patients. This is especially the case for the medical personnel who provide care and expect protection for themselves and their families, and the high-risk immunocompromised patients who seek treatment at the organization’s facilities. The new visitor policies state that adult patients cannot be accompanied by a visitor, with exceptions made for patients who require cognitive support or mobility assistance. In case a caretaker is required such as pediatric visits, only one will be allowed per patient. In addition, all patients, visitors and caretakers will be required to wear personal protective equipment at all times within the facility. Also, use of virtual technologies will be encouraged for communication. Additionally, visitors showing symptoms of Covid-19 will not be allowed into the facility (Weill Cornell Medicine, 2021b). Overall, Covid-19 epidemic has resulted in significant changes to visitor policies in the organization.

2. Discuss the degree to which the change has been disruptive and how the organization has responded to the dynamics created by this change.

The changes in visitor policies as applied by the organization have been very disruptive. Health care has typically been an anxiety-provoking experience for the patients. In the process of receiving care within the health care environment, the patients must not only manage their health condition, but also the non-familiar hospital environment, loss of independence and normal daily routines. Visitors and caregivers serve an important role by mediating the delivery of patient-centered care and transition into the role of a patient. Without the visitors, patients find it difficult to adjust to their new roles thereby compromising the care outcomes. In fact, the restrictive visitor policies have directly impacted the experience of patients in three ways. Firstly, patients without visitors and caregivers are less likely to have their preferences identified and addressed. Secondly, the lack of visitors has an adverse effect on the psychosocial wellbeing of the patients. Thirdly, patients who do not have visitors are likely to be dissatisfied with their health care experience (Zeh et al., 2020).

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The organization has responded to the new dynamics by increasing the presence of medical personnel who anticipate and meet the needs of patients thereby filling the gaps left by lack of visitors. This has had a positive effect on mediating activities previously mediated by visitors and caregivers, such as assistance getting out of bed and timely access to medication. Besides that, the presence of medical personnel is important in addressing the psychosocial stress that patients experience without visitors, especially in the domains of loneliness, isolation and anxiety. In addition, the organization has encouraged patients to regularly communicate with their family members outside the facility using virtual technologies so that they do not feel isolated (Zeh et al., 2020).

3. Evaluate the strategies the organization used in its change plan and determine the level of success the organization experienced with the strategies.

The organization has adopted a reactionary/remedial change strategy. In this case, a problem was identified (Covid-19 need for social distancing) before a solution was implemented (keeping visitors away). The change in policy were designed to address the issue, and this called for immediate action. This strategy targets change that may not be ideal, but is inevitable. Keeping visitors away from the patients may not be ideal because this has negative implications for care outcomes, but it is inevitable as it helps in protecting the patients and medical personnel from contracting Covid-19 virus. The organization has realized significant success from the strategy as evidenced by the low Covid-19 infection rates within the facility. Both the patients and medical personnel are assured that the organization is taking the necessary steps to keep them safe from being infected by the virus (Harris et al., 2016).

4. Determine the effect the change had on stakeholders, and to what degree stakeholders have resisted. Assess how well stakeholder resistance was addressed.

The new visitor policies implemented by the organization have had a significant effect on its stakeholders. Visitors are an important part of the recovery process as they help with interpreting the needs of the patients and ensuring that patient-centered care is delivered. In addition, it helps to improve the patient’s psychological wellbeing so that their stress and anxiety reduces even as they recover faster. Also, the presence of visitors creates the Hawthorne effect as medical personnel seek to perform better at care delivery when the visitors are observing them. The absence of visitors as indicated by the new policies imply that all the advantages brought about by visitors are lost. Patients have been resistant to the visitor policy changes. Their resistance was addressed through patient education that informed them about the need for the new policies in curtaining Covid-19 epidemic (Zeh et al., 2020).

Other than patients, medical personnel are also affected by the policy changes. They have to take on the roles of visitors in communicating with the patients and ensuring that patient-centered care is delivered. The medical personnel were resistant to the change because it adds to their responsibilities. However, the resistance was addressed by educating them and ensuring that they understand the need for the new policies in protecting themselves and patients from Covid-19 virus (Finkelman, 2019).

5. Evaluate the overall implications the change had on interdepartmental collaboration.

The change has improved interdepartmental collaboration at the organization. Firstly, it has provided the context for the personnel to feel committed and motivated to collaborate in addressing the Covid-19 concern. Secondly, it has helped in cultivating empathy as the personnel have a mutual understanding of what the change intends to achieve. Thirdly, it has helped in developing a common language since the medical personnel use the same language in communicating with other stakeholders about the policy change. Fourthly, it has facilitated consistent communication as they periodically evaluate the effects of the policy change. Fifthly, it has promoted an environment of psychological safety. Finally, it has fostered trust as the whole organization follows the same visitor policies intended to protect each other (Garcia-Dia, 2019).

References

Bemker, M., & Schreiner, B. (Eds.) (2017). The DNP Degree & Capstone Project: A Practical Guide. DEStech Publications, Inc.

Finkelman, A. (2019). Professional Nursing Concepts: Competencies for Quality Leadership (4^th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC.

Garcia-Dia, M. (2019). Project Management in Nursing Informatics. Springer Publishing Company.

Harris, J., Roussel, L., Thomas, P., & Dearman, P. (2016). Project Planning & Management: A Guide for Nurses and Interprofessional Teams. Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC.

Snipes, C. (2016). Project Management for the Advanced Practice Nurse. Springer Publishing Company.

Weill Cornell Medicine (2021). Visitor Policy Changes. https://weillcornell.org/coronavirus/visitor-policy-changes

Weill Cornell Medicine (2021a). About Us. https://weillcornell.org/about_us

Zeh, R. D., Santry, H. P., Monsour, C., Sumski, A. A., Bridges, J. F., … & Cloyd, J. M. (2020). Impact of visitor restriction rules on the postoperative experience of COVID-19 negative patients undergoing surgery. Surgery, 168(5), 770-776. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.surg.2020.08.010

Contemporary Organization Evaluation

In today’s fast-paced and global community, most organizations are faced with constant change. Research contemporary organizations that are currently responding to a significant change within the industry, such as disruptive technology; state, government, or industry regulations; environmental constraints; judicial or legislative rulings; etc.

Choose one organization from your research that has recently responded to major change, or is currently responding to change. Write a paper (1,250-1,500 words) discussing how well the organization is responding to the change dynamics. Include the following:

1. Describe the organization and the change to which it is responding.

Discuss the degree to which the change has been disruptive and how the organization has responded to the dynamics created by this change.

2. Evaluate the strategies the organization used in its change plan and determine the level of success the organization experienced with the strategies.
3. Determine the effect the change had on stakeholders, and to what degree stakeholders have resisted. Assess how well stakeholder resistance was addressed.
4. Evaluate the overall implications the change had on interdepartmental collaboration.
5. In your opinion, how well did the leaders of the organization respond and prepare for the change? What worked and what did not work with the strategies they implemented?
6. What modifications would you suggest the leaders of the organization make in order to better address the change dynamics? What additional strategies would you recommend to assist the organization through this change?

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

Contemporary Organization Evaluation Discussion Paper