Changes at Happy Trails Health Center

Case Study:

Ms. Sippy Delta has just been promoted to manager of health information services at Happy Trails Health Center. A team of physicians, administrators, and department heads has decided to transform the culture of the organization into a quality-driven, patient-centered environment. Health information is stored digitally on optical disk by scanning paper documents. The patient-centered-care project calls for a completely electronic health record, with data coming from various sources throughout the organization. Health informa-tion services will manage the central data repository. Delta is committed to this innovative approach but is concerned about how to communicate the changes to staff and how the new system will affect the department’s operations.

1. What factors should Delta address in implementing this major organizational change?

2. What obstacles is Ms. Delta likely to face as a department manager in taking on this project?

3. How can adopting a systems view of human resource management assist the managers responsible for implementing this major change?