HORIZONTAL THINKING IN HEALTHCARE ORGANIZATIONS 1

Horizontal Thinking in Healthcare Organizations

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Horizontal Thinking in Healthcare Organizations

Clinical excellence is crucial for the maximization of healthcare value in healthcare

organizations. In this sector, organization structures, clinical benchmarks and dashboards, and

evidence-based practices are crucial in setting clinical merit. Many healthcare organizations

are organized into different but related departments. They use various benchmarks and

dashboards for various clinical care guidelines. They rely on empirical practices, which are

some of the many factors that ground quality healthcare. Another component that sets the

pace for clinical excellence is the high specialization and division of labor experienced in the

sector with different experts serving in different positions and roles.

Clinical Departments: The Critical Care Unit

Health organizations are structured and organized into many departments. One of

these departments is the critical care department, also known as the intensive care unit (ICU),

intensive therapy unit (ITU), or intensive treatment unit (ITU). As suggests the titles, this

department is charged with the provision of intensive care treatment or medicine.

Categorically, the department caters to the individuals that are suffering from severe or life-

threatening injuries and or disorders that call for constant management, the help of life

support machines and intense medication to help the body function normally as it is given

time to respond to medications and recover (Murad, 2017). Usually, persons with organ

failures such as kidney, heart, and lungs are treated in the ICU.

Given the complexity and the high critical level involved in the ICU, highly trained,

qualified, and certified physicians and nurses, and respiratory therapists who specialize in

caring for critically ill patients usually staff the department as writes Murad (2017). ICUs are

also distinguished from general hospital wards by a higher staff-to-patient ratio and access to

advanced medical resources and equipment that is not routinely available elsewhere. Other
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conditions managed in the ICUs include septic shock and acute respiratory distress syndrome,

among many other life-threatening conditions.

The Healthcare Teams: Roles and Responsibilities

The complexity of healthcare organizations comes along high specialization and

division of labor. In other words, health organizations comprise different healthcare teams

who serve different roles and responsibilities. From a general perspective, some of the most

fundamental workers in hospitals are Executive Level Officer, Department Director,

Physician, and Nurse.

Executive level officers, as suggests the title, are the highest levels of management in

hospitals. They are involved in the planning, direction, and coordination of the daily

operations of health care centers under the support of assistant executives and staff managers,

according to Marquis and Huston (2021). Hospital CEOs' primary obligation is to ensure that

all aspects and parts of their organizations work efficiently. On the other hand, department

directors manage their respective departments. They are the financial and operation officers

of their respective departments charged with the responsibility of ensuring that every corner

of their departments is working efficiently and effectively.

By definition, physicians are persons qualified to practice medicine, particularly those

who specialize in the diagnosis and medical treatment as distinct from surgery (Marquis &

Huston, 2021). From a general point of view, physicians' jobs include diagnosis, treatment,

and or management of patients’ health issues or illnesses using medication, exercises, and

surgery. Lastly, nurses are from the narrowest angle, physicians helpers. They usually help

doctors perform diagnostic tests and help physicians in emergency rooms or other

departments as need arises (Marquis & Huston, 2021). Other roles of nurses include a record

of nurses' roles histories, providing emotional support, and providing follow-up care.
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Benchmarking and Dashboards

Benchmarking refers to a standard of measure for practices. The concept describes a

point of reference from which an evaluation of a given practice can be made (Rose, 2014).

On the contrary, dashboards are a contemporary analytics tool for monitoring healthcare KPIs

interactively and dynamically. Together, in healthcare, benchmarks, and dashboards ensure

improved efficiency, quality of care, patient safety, and patient satisfaction.

One guideline in which benchmarking played a crucial role in clinical care is the

breast cancer screening recommendation that all women above the age of 40 should receive

an annual clinical breast examination. This recommendation was made in a 1989 report of the

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which used a similar Canadian group’s report first

convened in 1976 as a standard of measure (Ross, 2017). Another guideline revolves around

schools functioning in relation to COVID-19 in Arizona County. The benchmark is that two

weeks of percentage positivity for the initial opening must be less than 7% within the county.

Hence, if figures are above the 7% mark, schools’ operation would be halted (Arizona

County, 2020). Lastly, dashboards are crucial in meeting quality are guidelines in healthcare,

according to Ross (2017). Clinical dashboards provide feedback to caregivers regarding their

performance compared to standards or targets, intending to inform decisions about and

improve patient care.

Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)

Evidence-based practice influences each team member's clinical performance

protocols so that it provides a basis for making well-founded decisions (Stephens, 2013).

Through EBP, the CEO, department directors, physicians, and nurses can stay updated about

new medical protocols for patient care. In this way, every team member can contribute

towards high-quality care above everything else.

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References

Arizona County, (2020). COVID-19 School Benchmarks. Retrieved on 30/8/2020 from

https://www.azdhs.gov/documents/preparedness/epidemiology-disease-control/

infectious-disease-epidemiology/novel-coronavirus/covid-19-school-benchmarks-

county.pdf

Marquis, B. L., & Huston, C. J. (2021). Leadership roles and management functions in

nursing: Theory and application. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health.

Murad, M. H. (March 01, 2017). Clinical Practice Guidelines: A Primer on Development and

Dissemination. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 92, 3, 423-433.

Ross, T. K. (2014). Health care quality management: Tools and applications. San Francisco:

Jossey-Bass.

Stevens, K. R. (January 01, 2013). The impact of evidence-based practice in nursing and the

next big ideas. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing,  18, 2.)