Medication Policy Implementation
Selecting and implementing any new type of software into the normal workflow of any organization is not an easy task. Health units require to make necessary and regular changes in the equipment and technology. Innovation in health units helps reduce errors, increases efficiency in time management improves patient documentation and care, and helps the unit compete fairly in the market. Barcode label technology is used in hospitals as a means for physicians to store information that can be scanned and used for proper treatment procedures and treatment verification. Barcodes also help keep track of important equipment, medication, specimens, and medical records. The health unit has recently changed technology and nursing staff. This move necessitates forming an implementation plan for the new equipment and how knowledge and training dissemination will take place.
Kottler suggests a model that uses eight steps to help organizations go through changes (Aziz, 2017). The first step in Kotter’s model states a need to create a sense of urgency for the changes. The is includes communicating the need for the new equipment and the benefits that the unit will reap. New barcode systems will help reduce the amount of time nurses use to find medication and locate patient documents, thereby reducing errors. Step two advocates the need to form a strong coalition to accomplish the necessary change. This means that initiating change in the unit will require support from high-end employees like the stakeholders and chairpersons by presenting statistics like expenses, time, and staff management. According to the FDA, the project of implementing new barcode systems in the unit will cost up to two thousand dollars per hospital plus an additional one thousand dollars for maintenance per year. Although the equipment incurs much cost, there are lower cases of mistakes, thereby avoiding extreme expenses that can be incurred at the incidence of a lawsuit on the hospital.
One of the biggest barriers to implementing new technology, including barcode systems, is the process of educating staff. In order to ensure that the unit still runs efficiently in the provision of services, staff training will occur in shifts. Staff who are not on call will be required to dedicate some hours of their time to sessions where they will receive lessons on operating the new system. The third step is to create a vision of change for the staff. Creating this vision will require input from the staff on some of the strategies they would prefer to help them accept and ease the new system into their schedule (Barrett, 2017). Staff input will ensure they feel included and therefore be more willing to accept the changes. Step four of Kotter’s model necessitates the need to communicate the vision. The strategy and information about the technology and other schedules should be spread throughout the whole organization through meetings, fliers, or communication equipment like pagers and reminders.
Step five is to remove all obstacles that will prevent the implementation of the technology. These obstacles can include hospital traditions, policies, or individuals. Creating short term goals is the sixth step. This process involves demonstrating some of the advantages of implementing the new system realized in a short set of time. This process helps motivate the staff and stakeholders towards accepting the changes. Step seven is to build on the changes brought about by the technology. Apart from celebrating the short-term goals, it is important to continue setting goals for the project to avoid mistakes resulting from not setting the equipment to complete. The last step is to anchor the new changes into the culture of the health unit. Changing the culture that employees are used to is difficult as people take time to adjust to new changes. The changes should be implemented well enough that the new habit and technology become the new culture. Accomplishing this task is by making this change included in the daily habits and workflow of the workers. The whole process of implementing the new technology to completion can take about six to nine months.
References
Aziz, A. (2017). A change management approach to improving safety and preventing needlestick injuries. Journal of Infection Prevention, 18(5), 257-262. https://doi.org/10.1177/1757177416687829
Barrett, A. K. (2017). Electronic health record (EHR) organizational change: Explaining resistance through profession, organizational experience, and EHR communication quality. Health Communication, 33(4), 496-506. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2016.1278506
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