Before you begin this assignment, be sure you have read the “UMUC Family Clinic Case Study” and your Week 1 and Week 2 syllabus readings, which discuss EHR functionality and Process Workflow Analysis and Mapping. You will need to refer to three of the HealthIT.gov documents available in Content>Course Resources: Overview of Steps to Implement an EHR System, Step 1, and Step 2. In addition, you should obtain concurrence from your faculty member that you have selected an appropriate process (see below).

Purpose of this Assignment

This assignment gives you the opportunity to apply your analysis skills to model a business process in an ambulatory setting in the healthcare industry. Modeling the process as it exists (and as it will exist) will aid in the analysis, selection and implementation of the EHR system for the medical practice. This assignment leads to the Stage 2 assignment which will give you the opportunity to apply your knowledge of technology solutions and EHR systems to improve the business process you select here. In this assignment, you will identify a process (workflow) in need of improvement, and plan for a revised and optimized workflow to improve the quality of care, safety, and financial management incentives. You will develop 2 process maps (AS IS and TO BE) for the clinical process workflow. This assignment addresses the following course outcome to enable you to:

• Evaluate the organizational environment in the health care industry to recognize how technology solutions enable strategic outcomes.
• Analyze the flow of data and information among disparate health information systems to support internal and external business processes.

Family Clinic Medical Practice

In order to apply technology to a process, the process must be thoroughly understood and models are used for this purpose. The model also supports business process analysis and redesign when the process is deemed to be inefficient or ineffective. In addition, models are used to design the “to-be” process that describes the desired end state after the technology solution is developed.

In the Step 1 document, under “Assess Your Current Practice,” you will see the following questions to be answered:

• Are administrative processes organized, efficient, and well documented?
• Are clinical workflows efficient, clearly mapped out, and understood by all staff?
• Are data collection and reporting processes well established and documented?

In the Step 2 document, read the section “Clarify and Prioritize” and the first two steps under “Steps in the Planning Process.” These sections demonstrate how process review, mapping and improvement fit with the selection of an EHR System, and are the standard starting point for EHR implementation.

For your Stage 1 Project for the Case Study, you will select a process used at the UMUC Family Clinic that needs to be improved. Then, you will create a model of a current process that defines in detail the steps in the process as they are done today. to aid in the analysis of the problem. Then, you will create a model of the proposed new process, as it will be performed after an EHR system (IT solution) is implemented. To ensure you select a process that will be related to an EHR system implementation, refer to the “Certification Criteria” in Content>Course Resources, particularly sections a and b.

Be sure to read the instructions for the remaining projects in this Case Study (Stages 2-4) to get an understanding of the future projects that build on the proposed solution and to help you in deciding upon your process.

When you have chosen a process to improve, please get it approved by your faculty member, as directed in the classroom.

Assignment

For this assignment you will identify a process in need of improvement and develop the models.

Business Process Analysis – Models of the AS IS Process and the TO BE Process with a brief explanation of how a technology solution can help improve the process.

In the textbook, Chapter 21 “Fundamentals of Health Workflow Analysis Process and Redesign”, several different methods of modeling business processes are illustrated. The model format should be a workflow diagram format. Examples of this format can be found in Chapter 21 under the heading “Workflow Diagram Example.” The process that you model must be clearly identified in the title of your Stage 1 Project and it needs to be appropriate to the UMUC Family Clinic. You may use Microsoft Word, Excel or Power Point.

1. First, you will provide a brief (approx. ½ page single-spaced) explanation of why this process can benefit from improvement using a technology solution.
2. Then you will model the process as it is currently performed at the UMUC Family Clinic; this is the AS IS Process.
3. Then you will model the way that you expect the new process to function after a technology solution (EHR System) is implemented and the process is improved; this is the TO BE Process. NOTE: We are NOT specifying the specific technology in the TO BE Process. Identifying the specific technology will be part of the Stage 2 assignment.

Note: A process is defined as “a series of actions that produce something or that lead to a particular result” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/process). An example would be the sign-in process at the UMUC Family Clinic.

Tools for Creating the Models

The following are two URL’s that have a more detailed description of Flow Charting and its uses: http://www.hci.com.au/hcisite2/toolkit/flowchar.htm

http://asq.org/learn-about-quality/process-analysis-tools/overview/flowchart.html

To create a flow chart in Word 2007 and 2010: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkN0dekcsmw

To create a flow chart or process map in Excel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_R73RVfHl0

To create a flow chart in PowerPoint: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8erOL-3Bho

Business Process Example from another industry: If a grocery store had a need to reduce expenses and improve customer satisfaction, a process needing improvement might be improving the inventory process to ensure availability of products for customers as well as to reduce cost related to spoiled inventory. The model would include the steps necessary to record inventory information, update inventory when merchandise is sold, place orders for additional inventory from suppliers, etc.

Submit your Stage 1 paper via your Assignment Folder Stage 1 as an attached document (or documents) with your last name included in the filename(s) (LASTNAME_Stage1).

Note: Your models will be evaluated on whether they are applicable to the process identified, all major steps in the AS-IS and TO-BE processes are included and correctly modeled, and they are appropriate to the UMUC Family Clinic.

Your paper will be evaluated on whether or not you correctly incorporated the course concepts from the textbook and addressed all parts of the questions.  If you use external resources, be sure to cite and reference them correctly in APA format. Remember, this is an information systems management course, and your improved process must require an information technology solution. Use the Rubric below to be sure you have covered all aspects.

4 Pages

Additional Files:

UMUC-Family-Clinic-Case-Study.pdf