How does the nurse manager or leader play a role in the reengineering of health care?

"Workplace reengineering, reorganization, and redesign are responses to internal and external factors exerting influences on the organization in this dynamic healthcare environment" (Edens, 2005, para. 1). Of the three, reengineering is the most aggressive process.

Reengineering is defined as "the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of process to achieve dramatic improvements in critical, contemporary measures of performance, such as cost, quality, service, and speed" (Edens, 2005, para. 1). Reengineering is about making a whole new blue print of a process (Edens, 2005).

All businesses including the healthcare systems, have the potential to become stagnant, becoming stagnant is not good for business, and companies cannot survive that way.

There are many factors that constantly affect the healthcare business, therefore it is up to the healthcare institution to find new ways to manage the incoming internal and external forces that influence them and create new and innovative ways to deal with them (Edens, 2005). Some of the factors that influence may include "changes in reimbursement, shortage or excess of labor, changes in the political landscape, and the economy" (Edens, 2005, para. 2).

Reengineering involves change, and within an organization leading change requires clearly stating the vision and direction, along with involvement of all involved in this change, and also to provide motivation in order to carry out the new process (Edens, 2005).

The knowledge of change theory is a way in which leaders can effectively inform their staff of changes in a positive and timely manner (Edens, 2005). Educating employees is a primary goal of a manager, so they are informed and are aware of what to expect when the changes happen.

Change happening within an organization can be stressful on the individuals employed by the institution, by involving these individuals in the process of change can help alleviate some of the stress (Edens, 2005).

Leaders are the "change agents", when a planned change is to be implemented, it is up to the leader or "change agent" to clearly present the change and along with the need for it and the benefits this change will provide, to their employees (Huber, 2014). By informing and involving staff about change that is happening can make for a more positive response to it.