A. Discuss the goals and rationale for an affiliation by doing the following:
1. Explain critical goals for the affiliation and specific criteria a candidate affiliate must meet.
The Twin Pines Medical Center (TMPC) serves northern Louisiana's low-income,
uninsured, insured, and underserved populations. Pine Parish’s population is just under
48,000 community members that the TMPC serves. At least 33% of the population is
uninsured, and 36% is enrolled in Medicaid. The population comprises 93% Black, White,
and Native Americans; the remaining 7% is Hispanic, Asian, and two or more races. There
is a higher incidence rate for diabetes in the non-Hispanic black population and the
Native Americans, equaling 57%. (Profile: Twin Pines Medical Center, n.d.)
The goal to improve these services would mean that critical care cases related to diabetic
conditions could be monitored and managed before emergency medicine needs to be
administered if the preventive treatment is improved for the population. If complex care
can be avoided from the start, that would increase the patient's outcome and the quality
of care they receive. The patient outcome when the affiliation adds an endocrinologist,
nutritionist, health educator, telemedicine, case management, and educational resources
for diabetic care will improve drastically.
The organization must choose an organization that fits its mission and adds more value
to its partnership. The organization selected should be able to fuse with close values and
organizational culture. The corporate culture, management, decision-making, and
governance must be compatible. (Grube, M. E., & Finnerty, M. J., 2011)
2. Identify three specific advantages a well-aligned affiliation would provide for TPMC.
TMPC and the affiliate will improve the quality of services, starting with primary care,
family medicine, and emergency medicine for the diabetic community. Adding specialty
care for the diabetic population and adequate equipment in the emergency department
will help decrease the number of cases seen and increase preventative care.
The patient outcome when the affiliation adds an endocrinologist, nutritionist, health
educator, telemedicine, case management, and educational resources for diabetic care
will improve drastically. The advantage of the affiliation would be that it will grow and
expand services to the community.
An advantage would be shared budget and resources between the two facilities. An
upgraded integrated medical record system will positively impact the organization by
providing an improved way to create and monitor the comprehensive care plans that the
local communities will benefit from.
3. Analyze the current state of TPMC and the projected market segmentation for TPMC
anticipated from the proposed affiliation. Your analysis must be supported by demographic
data and include the following elements:
The center offers primary care services with a few specialties: outpatient services,
inpatient services, family medicine, and women’s health. “The mission and values to
provide accessible, affordable, comprehensive, and quality services to the communities it
serves.” (Profile: Twin Pines Medical Center, n.d.) However, the center lacks the diabetic
care specialty that the community desperately needs. The preventive care for diabetes
and health education is inadequate for this location. The emergency room sees diabetic
