Implementation Plan Discussion Paper

Develop a 5–7-page implementation plan addressing the various factors critical to the successful deployment of the new or upgraded telehealth technology that was the focus of the previous two assessments.

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Technology continues to move at an accelerated pace, and the delivery of health care is shifting from office-based environments to the home. For this reason, health care organizations must be at technology’s cutting edge in order to remain competitive in today’s environment. Integrating the daily activities of patients into the health care continuum will improve the quality of care that is provided and enable more holistic care.

This assessment provides an opportunity for you to develop an implementation plan that addresses the various factors critical to the successful deployment of the new or upgraded telehealth technology that was the focus of your previous assessments.

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:

Competency 2: Develop a collaborative technology integration strategy.
- Assess the adequacy of existing telehealth technology infrastructure in an organization or practice setting.
- Assign tasks and responsibilities for deploying a new or upgraded telehealth technology.
- Develop an implementation schedule.
- Develop a post-deployment telehealth technology evaluation and maintenance strategy.
Competency 3: Develop a strategy for managing technology use that enhances patient care and organizational effectiveness.
- Determine staff training requirements and strategies.
- Develop a strategy for collaborating with patients and other health care providers.
Competency 5: Communicate effectively with diverse audiences, in an appropriate form and style, consistent with applicable organizational, professional, and scholarly standards.
- Support assertions, arguments, propositions, and conclusions with relevant and credible evidence.
- Write clearly and concisely in a logically coherent and appropriate form and style.

SCENARIO:

Work continues for the team at St. Anthony Medical Center in Minneapolis in charge of implementing a pilot telehealth program in rural Slayton, Minnesota. This program will allow students to interact with mental health counselors at St. Anthony Medical Center during the school day. Implementation Plan Discussion Paper

With key stakeholders on board, there are quite a few things for the team to consider.

Ana NguyenBehavioral Health Nurse Manager – St. Anthony Medical Center

Before we get started, I just want to share with the group how excited people in Murray County are about this program. There is so much enthusiasm and support. We even had an opportunity to speak with some of the students in their system and they were very interested in what we’re doing. They had some great ideas – not all of which can be implemented in the pilot, but which are worth exploring for future incarnations of this program. For now though, Tara and I are focusing on drawing up an implementation plan for the pilot.

Frederick MoraDirector of Quality Management – Vila Health Group

Good. I know we’ve talked about how the technology will integrate with our existing telehealth infrastructure. Be sure to address that thoroughly in the implementation plan. We need to be very clear about what changes, if any, will be required and what the plan is for making said changes.

I also find it very helpful when the implementation plan spells out the key implantation tasks and names the point person for each task. It makes it a lot easier to determine who to speak to when questions arise.

Christopher HewittVice President of Medical Support Services

Another consideration when you’re putting the implementation plan together is to address change management. What approach is being taken and how will it affect users. What training are we talking about? That will need to be a significant section of the plan, I think.

Tara JenningsDirector of Nursing Informatics – St. Anthony Medical Center

This is great. Ana and I identified several of these points as things to address in the implementation plan, but not all of them. With training, we’d been talking about training needs from the school perspective, but neither of us factored in training for SAMC personnel. If nothing else, the tech support staff will be involved, but I know they aren’t the only department impacted by this project. I’m making a note to make sure we really think that section through.

Blake CarterDirector of Information Technology – Vila Health Group

Among other things, you will have to develop an implementation schedule, assign tasks and responsibilities for deploying the technology, and develop a post-deployment telehealth technology evaluation and strategy. To help you succeed at the complex set of tasks, talk to some of your colleagues and get their thoughts on how to proceed.

Troy HollandDirector of Patient Services – St. Anthony Medical Center

Speaking to the change management issues, be sure you articulate the communication strategy. There are a lot of people collaborating on this project – parents, school officials, the students who are basically our patients. We need to anticipate as much as possible how it will be received. Leading a project like this is complicated. We need to be strategic about what leadership style is best suited to ensuring success.

Along those lines, the implementation plan should also describe the evaluation and maintenance plans. Because this is a pilot, factoring in a plan for analyzing short and long-term effects on both organizations. Workers – and in the case of the schools, teachers and students – will be impacted by this new program. The implementation plan should describe our plan for identifying what works and what doesn’t – and what we plan to do about things that don’t work.

Conclusion

Activity complete! In this activity, you had the opportunity to observe the planning committee identify key components of the implementation plan. They also discussed how understanding the stakeholders will support creating a persuasive and effective presentation. This information should help you complete your own stakeholder presentation for the topic you have chosen for your assignment.

Vila Health is a virtual environment that simulates a real-world health care system. In the various Vila Health scenarios, you will apply professional strategies, practice skills, and build competencies that you can apply to your coursework and in your career. The information you gather in this scenario will help you to complete the assessment.

ASSESSMENT INSTRUCTIONS:

Preparation

Based on the positive reactions and feedback from stakeholders with regard to the proposed telehealth technology, executive leaders have decided to move forward with implementation of this telehealth solution and have asked you to develop the implementation plan. Implementation Plan Discussion Paper

To prepare for the assessment, you are encouraged to reflect on the factors critical to the successful deployment of the new or upgraded telehealth technology and on how such technology would be implemented in your organization or practice setting. In addition, you are encouraged to become familiar with the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) process for successfully implementing information systems or a change model for technology use that you think best supports your technology implementation ideas. Refer to the suggested readings, supplemented, as desired, by your own research. You may also wish to:

Review the assessment instructions and scoring guide to ensure that you understand the work you will be asked to complete.
Review the Guiding Questions: Implementation Plan document, which includes questions to consider and additional guidance on how to successfully complete the assessment.

Note: Remember that you can submit all or a portion of your draft needs assessment summary to Smarthinking Tutoring for feedback before you submit the final version for this assessment. If you plan on using this free service, be mindful of the turnaround time of 24–48 hours for receiving feedback.

Requirements

Develop a technology implementation plan that supports the vision for safe, high-quality health care in your organization or practice setting.

Complete the Vila Health: Preparing to Develop an Implementation Plan simulation, linked in the required resources.

The implementation plan requirements, outlined below, correspond to the grading criteria in the Implementation Plan Scoring Guide, so be sure to address each point. Read the performance-level descriptions for each criterion to see how your work will be assessed. The Guiding Questions: Implementation Plan document, linked in the resources, provides additional considerations that may be helpful in completing your assessment. In addition, be sure to note the requirements below for document format and length and for citing supporting evidence.

Assess the adequacy of existing telehealth technology infrastructure in your organization or practice setting.
Assign tasks and responsibilities for deploying the new or upgraded telehealth technology.
Develop an implementation schedule.
Determine staff training requirements and strategies.
Develop a strategy for collaborating with patients and other health care providers.
Develop a post-deployment telehealth technology evaluation and maintenance strategy.
Support assertions, arguments, propositions, and conclusions with relevant and credible evidence.
Write clearly and concisely in a logically coherent and appropriate form and style.

Document Format and Length

Format your implementation plan using APA style.

Use the APA Style Paper Template, linked in the resources. An APA Style Paper Tutorial is also provided to help you in writing and formatting your implementation plan. Be sure to include:
- A title page and references page. An abstract is not required.
- A running head on all pages.
- Appropriate level 1 section headings.
Your implementation plan should be 5–7 pages in length, not including the title page and references page.

Supporting Evidence

Cite at least five credible sources from peer-reviewed journals or professional industry publications to support your implementation plan.

Additional Requirements

Proofread your implementation plan before you submit it to minimize errors that could distract readers and make it more difficult for them to focus on the substance of your plan.

Grading Rubric:

1- Assess the adequacy of existing telehealth technology infrastructure in an organization or practice setting.

Passing Grade- Assesses the adequacy of existing telehealth technology infrastructure in an organization or practice setting, and identifies knowledge gaps, unknowns, missing information, unanswered questions, or areas of uncertainty (where further information could improve the assessment).

2- Assign tasks and responsibilities for deploying a new or upgraded telehealth technology.

Passing Grade- Assigns tasks and responsibilities for deploying a new or upgraded telehealth technology, including rationale and alternatives.

3- Develop an implementation schedule.

Passing Grade- Develops an implementation schedule, including rationale and alternatives.

4- Determine staff training requirements and strategies.

Passing Grade- Determines staff training requirements and strategies, and identifies assumptions on which the determination is based.

5- Develop a strategy for collaborating with patients and other health care providers.

Passing Grade- Develops a strategy for collaborating with patients and other health care providers, and identifies assumptions on which the strategy is based.

6- Develop a post-deployment telehealth technology evaluation and maintenance strategy.

Passing Grade- Develops a post-deployment telehealth technology evaluation and maintenance strategy, and suggests criteria that could be used to evaluate the success of the initiative.

7- Support assertions, arguments, propositions, and conclusions with relevant and credible evidence.

Passing Grade- Supports assertions, arguments, propositions, and conclusions with relevant, credible, and convincing evidence. Skillfully combines error-free source citations with a perceptive and coherent synthesis of the evidence.

8- Write clearly and concisely in a logically coherent and appropriate form and style.

Passing Grade- Writes clearly and concisely in a logically coherent and appropriate form and style. Main points, ideas, arguments, or propositions are well-developed and engaging. Adheres to all applicable disciplinary and scholarly writing standards and conventions. Implementation Plan Discussion Paper