Application Assignment: Planned Change in a Department or Unit

Health care organizations are continuously immersed in change from the emergence of new policies, to promote quality care and improve patient safety to keeping pace with the rapid growth in knowledge and best practices. Establishing a solid framework for planning and implementing change is a wise move, as it provides a foundation for the extensive coordination that will be needed to successfully facilitate the change.

For this Assignment, you propose a change at the department or unit level and develop a plan for guiding the change effort.

To prepare:

• Review Chapter 8 in the course text. Focus on Kurt Lewin's change theory, and contrast it with other classic change models and strategies.

• Reflect on problems, inefficiencies, and critical issues within a specific department, unit, or area in your organization or one with which you are familiar. Select one issue as a focal point for this assignment, and consider a change that could be made to address the issue.

• Think about how the change would align with the organization's mission, vision, and values as well as relevant professional standards.

• Using one of the change models or strategies discussed in Chapter 8, begin formulating a plan for implementing the change within the department/unit. Outline the steps that you and/or others should follow to facilitate the change effort. Align these steps to the change model or strategy you selected.

• Determine who should be involved in initiating and managing the change. Consider the skills and characteristics that are necessary to facilitate this change effort.

To complete:

Write a 3- to 5-page paper (page count does not include title and reference page) that addresses the following:

• Identify a problem, inefficiency, or issue within a specific department/unit.
• Describe a specific, realistic change that could be made to address the issue.
• Summarize how the change would align with the organization's mission, vision, and values as well as relevant professional standards.
• Identify a change model or strategy to guide your planning for implementing the change. Provide a rationale for your selection.
• Outline the steps that you and/or others would follow to facilitate the change. Align these steps to your selected change model or strategy.
• Explain who would be involved in initiating and managing this change. Describe the skills and characteristics that would be necessary to facilitate the change effort.

Learning Resources

Required Readings

Marquis, B. L., & Huston, C. J. (2017). Leadership roles and management functions in nursing: Theory and application (9th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.

• Review Chapter 7, "Strategic and Operational Planning"
• Chapter 8, "Planned Change"

This chapter explores methods for facilitating change and the theoretical underpinnings of implementing effective change

McAlearney, A., Terris, D., Hardacre, J., Spurgeon, P. Brown, C., Baumgart, A., Nyström, M. (2014). Organizational coherence in health care organizations: Conceptual guidance to facilitate quality improvement and organizational change. Quality Management in Health Care, 23(4).

An international group of investigators explored the issues of organizational culture and Quality Improvement (QI) in different health care contexts and settings. The aim of the research was to examine if a core set of organizational cultural attributes are associated with successful QI systems.

Mitchell, G. (2013). Selecting the best theory to implement planned change. Nursing Management - UK, 20(1), 32-37.

Shirey, M. R. (2013). Lewin's Theory of Planned Change as a strategic resource. The Journal of Nursing Administration, 43(2), 69-72.

Required Media

Laureate Education (Producer). (2012g). Organizational dynamics: Planned change and project planning. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Optional Resources

Marquis, B. L., & Huston, C. J. (2017). Leadership roles and management functions in nursing: Theory and application (9th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.

• Chapter 9, "Time Management"

Batras, D., Duff, C., & Smith, B. J. (2014). Organizational change theory: implications for health promotion practice. Health Promotion International, Retrieved from MEDLINE with Full Text, EBSCOhost

This article reviews select organizational change models to identify the most pertinent insights for health promotion practitioners.