Assignment Overview
As a healthcare provider, it is essential to understand the relationship between economics, resources, budgeting, and staffing, and how these issues affect the ability to provide safe, quality care to patients. Two basic types of health care budgets affect nursing: capital and operating budgets. Capital budgets are used to plan investments and upgrades to physical assets that lose or gain value over time. Operating budgets include personnel costs and annual facility operating costs. In this assignment, you will select a healthcare budget to analyze and present your findings to stakeholders.
Assignment Instructions:
Analyze a healthcare organization’s capital or operating budget and create a slide presentation of your findings and recommendations for stakeholders. The presentation should include the following content:
Budget Analysis (2-3 slides)
Obtain a current or previous capital or operating budget or annual report that exists within your healthcare organization from your supervisor or research a healthcare organization budget that is publicly available. Include background information and some context about the healthcare organization. Include a copy of the budget as one of the slides in the presentation.
- Identify the components of the budget and describe which categories within the budget are impacted by patient outcomes (e.g., patient satisfaction, HCAHAP scores length of stay, readmissions) and which categories may impact patient care.
Organizational Budget Procedures/Processes (4-5 slides)
Interview a leader in your organization or research online to find details on your chosen organization budget procedures and processes.
- Describe the role of the budget within the specific healthcare organization or unit and how it impacts patient outcomes.
- Identify titles/roles of people in the organization who help create and manage budgets for this organization.
- Outline the process for reviewing and revising budgets and/or submitting budget requests within this unit, department, or organization.
- Discuss the process for communication of budgetary decisions within the organization.
Recommendations for Improvement (5-7 slides)
- Review the budget and identify expected or unexpected items or outliers. Describe whether that issue, opportunity, or concern is capital vs. unit and what implications this has on patient care and healthcare practice.
- Make general recommendations to the (unit, department, or organizational) appropriate leader about areas that should be cut, reappropriated, or realigned to improve the issue, opportunity, or concern identified.
- Reflecting on this budget and your current practice, develop specific recommendations for the (unit, department, or organization) appropriate leader about one area of focus within the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
Application of Analysis (1 slide)
- Consider the following scenario:
- The organization you obtained the sample budget from has directed all managers to either cut 5%, increase revenue, or reprioritize spending to meet the budget for the next fiscal year. Based on the budget, justify your choice to cut spending, increase revenue or reprioritize spending.
- Describe which areas you would make cuts or adjustments or how you would increase revenue or reprioritize spending.
- Which lines in the budget are priorities to keep?
- If you make cuts, explain how the remaining budget items are reasonable for the organization and department given the size of the organization and the population served.
- The organization you obtained the sample budget from has directed all managers to either cut 5%, increase revenue, or reprioritize spending to meet the budget for the next fiscal year. Based on the budget, justify your choice to cut spending, increase revenue or reprioritize spending.
