Decision-Making – Important Tool in Management and Leadership

Decision-Making Decision-Making Decision-making introduction Excellent decision-making is an essential tool used for management and leadership within an organization. It is important that an organization learns to make appropriate and well-considered decisions; in return the manager will lead the team to spectacular and well deserved success. However, poor decisions made can lead to failure. Decision-making is essential to organizations across the globe, especially the health care.
When decisions are made in the healthcare effective communication tools are essential for success. Decision-making is a crucial element within the healthcare. This paper will analyze and discuss a rational decision-making process that would be appropriate for a healthcare organization, along with providing quality and risk management tools that will assist the healthcare leaders. Healthcare decision-making According to BusinessDictionary. com decision-making is defined as, “The thought process of selecting a logical choice from the available options.
When trying to make a good decision, a person must weigh the positives and negatives of each option, and consider all the alternatives” (BusinessDictionarty. com, 2012). Decision-making is key to a successful healthcare organization. According to David H. Hickam decision aids are, “tools that help individuals become involved in decision-making by providing information about the options, outcomes, and by clarifying personal values” (Hickam, 2010, p699/para1). Effective management decision- making takes on the responsibly in a chaotic and difficult healthcare environment.

These daily but important decisions facility members make can be life or death for their patients. That is why it is important for healthcare leaders to take on the responsibility of developing quality and risk management tools that suit their organization. These tools and strategies ensure that facility members develop an excellent decision-making skill that allows the healthcare to runs effectively. A great example of decision-making process within the healthcare would be SWOT analysis. SWOT analysis plays an important role within the success of a healthcare organization.
It helps healthcare facilities identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats within the organization (MarketingTeacher. com, 2012. These tools help specific and critical thinking to improve objectives and strategy planning. Healthcare quality management tools When running a smooth and successful healthcare organization quality management tools are an important aspect when dealing with decision-making. One tool in particular that helps decision-making would be flowcharts. When the healthcare uses SWOT analysis flowcharts are a visual aid that represents graphical and/or maps.
A flowchart allows the organization to see their improvements and/or failures. For example flowcharts could represent the amount of money the organization spent within the past six months. This allows the facility to be involved and aware of their expenses. It also helps organize, solve problems, or miscommunication, and determine if it is logical. This will help bring light redundancies, cut meet deadlines, delays, and indirect pathways. Healthcare risk management tools On the other hand, risk management tools play an important role in the process of decision-making as well.
One tool essential in the process of decision-making is risk analysis because analysis in risk management is used to evaluate the incidents. When the healthcare uses SWOT analysis it helps identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the organization to help keep the organization successful. When evaluating incidents within healthcare organizations facility members can convert back to their SWOT analysis, by evaluating the situation members can determine whether it is a weaknesses or threat to the organization.
Risk analysis is based on a structured approach to thinking though threats, which than is followed by an evaluation of the possibility and cost of events that have occurred (Mind Tool, 2012). Conclusion In conclusion, decision-making is an important aspect in healthcare organization. SWOT analysis plays a key role in decision-making as well. It allows the healthcare facilities to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunity, and threats within the organization. There are also many quality and risk management tools that help the SWOT analysis and decision-making process run smoothly and successful.
Reference BusinessDictionary. com. (2012). Decision Making. Retrieved from http://www. businessdictionary. com/definition/decision-making. html MarketingTeacher. com. (2012). Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunity, and Threats (SWOT) Retrieved from http://marketingteacher. com/lesson-store/lesson-swot. html  Mind Tools. (2012). Risk analysis. Retrieved from http://www. mindtools. com/pages/article/newTMC_07. htm Hickam, D. H. (2010). Medical Decision Making. Decision Aids: Evolving From Novelties to Effective Communication Tools. Retrieved from http://mdm. sagepub. com/content/30/6/699. full. pdf+html