Ashford 5: – Week 4 – Assignment 3

S.W.O.T. (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, 
Threats)

For this assignment, using the situation given below, 
apply the S.W.O.T. Situational Planning Strategy which was described in Chapters 
4 and 7 of your course text: 

Situation:  You are the C.E.O. of Community South Medical 
Center, a large, urban for-profit healthcare facility.  This institution has 
comprehensive health services including acute care, residential care, 
independent living, in-home nursing, hospice, neonatal, and pediatric services, 
advanced cardiac services, a major trauma center, a center of excellence for 
pulmonary services, and a neurosurgery center.

Community South Medical Center has a positive bottom line and is striving to 
enhance health services for the population it serves.  The patient care mix has 
shifted in the last three years and its reimbursement source is currently:  25% 
Medicaid (up 20%); 35% Medicare (down 12 %); 25% employer sponsored health 
insurance (unchanged), 8% managed care (down 20 percent), 4% private pay 
(unchanged) and 4% no-pay (up 25%).

The Medical Center is in an older urban area.  Businesses with well-paying 
jobs have gradually been replaced by smaller shops and other small businesses.  
Overall, the community is trending towards a predominantly elderly population.  

The Medical Center has an excellent reputation and has been recognized in the 
past by receiving a Baldrige Center of Excellence evaluation and a The Joint 
Commission (T.J.C.) approval for their quality of services; however, recent 
self-inspections indicated a slight decline in compliance with T.J.C. 
standards.  Patient satisfaction survey results have an overall mean of 95 
percent.  The medical staff strongly supports new program development and there 
is an abundant supply of physicians.

Currently, the major issues confronting the Community South Medical Center 
are: an identified shortage of clinical staff including registered nurses, 
respiratory therapists, and medical technologists; non-interfacing information 
technology systems; antiquated facilities and infrastructure; decline in T.J.C. 
compliance on internal audits; and a shift to its financial mix. 

Action:  As the C.E.O., it is time to embark on the annual 
updating of the organization’s strategic plan.  The last major revision to the 
strategic direction was completed three years ago.   

In a four- to 
six-page (excluding title and reference pages) double-spaced paper, consider and 
respond to the following points: 

• Select one of the needs of Community South Medical Center and identify at 
  least one strength, one weakness, one opportunity, and one threat (S.W.O.T.) for 
  that need.  How do each of these (e.g., the strength, the weakness, the 
  opportunity, and the threat) correlate to the overarching issues confronting 
  Community South Medical Center?
• Is it time to revise the strategic mission and plan of the organization from 
  three years ago or continue as originally planned with a yearly assessment? 
  Should the C.E.O. address the issues confronting Community South Medical Center 
  or wait another year? If so, what should the strategic plan be? If not, 
  why?
• What leadership positions would be a part of your strategic management team? 
  Why? What would each of their responsibilities entail?
• What are some of the market trends you can identify in this area? How might 
  they affect Community South Medical Center? How would you prepare for them? 

You must use a minimum of four scholarly sources, excluding the course text, 
cited according to APA format as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Your 
paper and all sources must be formatted according to APA style.  

Carefully review the Grading Rubric for the criteria that 
will be used to evaluate your assignment.