WOODVILLE HOSPITAL CASE STUDY

Woodville Hospital Case Study

Woodville Hospital Case Study

Mission Statement for change

In the first place Ashok should have designed the mission statement for change. Regarding change at pharmacy his views and vision may be implicit but mission statement makes it explicit with added benefits. Firstly it can be communicated and discussed easily and secondly it facilitates the process of decision making and forms the required foundation of meticulous and thorough research (Peters, 1987:40). The mission statement in this case must contain the rationale of the service as apparently thought by the key opinion makers. All stakeholders including patients must be given desired opportunity to have a say equally and blatantly in crafting the mission statement of the pharmacy department.

Jacqueline as Chief Pharmacist looked more concerned about the safety and accuracy of medications as they left the pharmacy. All activities were centralized at one place in the pharmacy like I/V additives service for better control, accuracy and safety. In case of a dispute between various uses of resources she always supported the pharmacy functions. Penny and Stuart were her close allies who supported her in decision making being the most powerful people in the department.

Ashok has a different opinion altogether. He wanted to ensure safety and accuracy of medications not only on leaving the pharmacy but until such a time when it is consumed by the patient. Anne supports his views while Penny and Stuart do not. Ashok's mission statement is balanced between working outside as well as inside the pharmacy. Outside working would include influencing and persuasion but no control for obvious reasons. Working inside the pharmacy would ensure safety and timely service. Ashok's mission statement can therefore be described as:

“To ensure that patients get the pharmaceuticals in a safe and timely manner and use them as recommended in collaboration with other health care providers”

The Seven S Model for change

This model was originally designed by Waterman, Peters and Phillips (1980). It has a focus on internal environment and evaluates the available resources and competencies within a team or an organization and makes an assessment as to how far they are contributing in accomplishing its mission or purpose. The model suggests that the stipulated qualities could be classified under seven headings for efficient and effective operation. A list of strengths and areas of improvement is prepared to highlight everything which pertains to the department.

When we apply this model to Woodville Pharmacy to accomplish change which Ashok wanted to achieve, our findings are summarised below.

Structure

Ashok's mission statement requires a balanced structure of the Pharmacy department with strong supply functions on one hand and excellent coordination with other health care providers on the other hand outside the pharmacy. At present the structure is tilted more towards in house departments rather than towards external settings.

Strategy

We came to know in this case that a strategy document is available in the department having a mention of key components in it like Patient Own Dispensing (POD) Scheme and enhanced coordination in medical ...