How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example

How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example

What was communication failure?

I worked in a healthcare organization that intended to implement a computerized provide order entry (CPOE) system to help physicians place medication orders and laboratory and radiology orders electronically to minimize paper, fax, and telephone use. The organization sought to adopt the CPOE to improve patient safety by reducing medication errors. It would also increase efficiency since orders are transmitted electronically (Mogharbel et al., 2021). However, the organization did not extensively consult physicians and other providers during the adoption, especially during the testing phase. This failure to engage providers throughout the implementation meant that the organization did not address provider concerns or get feedback from providers about the effectiveness of the system and any user issues that could be addressed before the system was rolled out in the entire organization. This resulted in resistance towards the system after a while due to difficulty of use following a poor user interface and miscommunication between the user and the system.(How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

What communication needs were not met?

Providers are the users, and for any technological implementation involving human-computer interaction, user requirements must be addressed comprehensively. Providers were not involved throughout the implementation process, only being informed that a new system would be adopted. The change implementation team and leadership failed to communicate the need for the system, the implications for providers and patients, the cost-benefit analysis, and obtain feedback from providers about usability. Generally, the implementation team failed to address user requirements and system usability needs by not collecting the required feedback from providers during the testing phase.(How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

What was the result of these failures in communication?

The lack of communication with providers throughout the implementation process, not considering provider requirements and perspectives on the system, and failure to collect adequate feedback during the testing phase led to resistance, especially by the physicians. The system did not fulfil its purpose as it had inconsistent medication naming, poor medication search functions, difficulty interpreting displays, and data entry issues. These difficulties frustrated physicians with the system and the organization, and reverted to old ways of ordering medication and tests, including paper, fax, and telephone. Additionally, the CPOE seemed to increase medication errors and was more vulnerable to wrong-patient errors because of a poor user interface.(How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

What needed to be done to correct this problem?

Effective communication is integral to successful change project implementation (Shakeri & Khalilzadeh, 2020). Providers are stakeholders in healthcare change projects and should be involved and consulted throughout the development and implementation. The organizational leadership and implementation team ought to engage providers in the initial decision to acquire the system and collect their requirements for consideration in system development. The leadership and project manager should also communicate continuously with providers in project implementation, offering updates and gathering feedback to ensure they address concerns entirely (Bellevue University, 2019). Additionally, providers should be part of the testing team because they are the system users. Providers should use the system before its roll-out and evaluate whether it serves its purpose or whether improvements are necessary to make the CPOE more responsive, efficient, and user-friendly. (How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

References

Bellevue University. (2019, June 28). Importance of communicating with project stakeholders. Bellevue University Project Management Center of Excellence. https://pmcenter.bellevue.edu/2019/06/28/importance-of-communicating-with-project-stakeholders/(How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Mogharbel, A., Dowding, D., & Ainsworth, J. (2021). Physicians’ Use of the Computerized Physician Order Entry System for Medication Prescribing: Systematic Review. JMIR medical informatics, 9(3), e22923. https://doi.org/10.2196/22923(How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Shakeri, H., & Khalilzadeh, M. (2020). Analysis of factors affecting project communications with a hybrid DEMATEL-ISM approach (A case study in Iran). Heliyon, 6(8), e04430. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04430(How Communication Efforts Fall Short in Healthcare Organizations-Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/