Public Value in Practice

Healthcare provision is a crucial concept that influences wellbeing in the entire human community. Conceptual evolution is an inevitable phenomenon that affects the principles underlying interactions between humans and, in this case, the systems involved in the provision of healthcare services. To provide such services while embodying public value involves the dissemination of services appreciated by the population not only in their own right, but also for the nature in which they are accessed and delivered. Meeting the constantly changing demands of the public requires the consideration of numerous aspects involving the public’s view of safety and quality and the implementation of strategies aimed at improving the existing paradigms within an organisation (Conrad, 2015). The latter is an initiative of organisational, administrative mechanisms. The administrative elements may effect change through the creation of a public focused vision and mission, as well as through the improvement of the numerous aspects of the working environment of a healthcare institution (Moore and Khagram, 2004). The embodiment of the concept of public value focuses on promoting public interest before the profit or growth of any organisation.

In this article, the analysis of healthcare services provision from a public value perspective will measure the vision, mission and values of Prince Sultan Military Medical City (PSMMC), thereby guaranteeing an all-around improvement of healthcare dissemination. There will be a need for any director of digital health in the medical city to analyse strategies created to improve the efficiency and reliability of the healthcare services provided in the institution (Moore and Khagram, 2004). In this quest, the utilisation of public value theory and practice acts as a significant instrument that influences the currently available systems.

Leadership is the foundation of any project’s success. The administration has the functions of mobilisation of the workforce, provision of equipment and mechanisms necessary for change, as well as the capacity to establish blueprints needed for the perceived change (Sfantou et al., 2017). The pledge the author made included a commitment to improving the leadership skills that act as the core of the process of change (Marchand and Brunet, 2017). A leader needs to be empathic and have an understanding of public change to perceive healthcare at Prince Sultan Military Medical City from the perspective of the patient. Furthermore, a leader needs to understand the dynamics that influence healthcare employees’ performance in developing effective systems that warrant efficiency across the dimensions (Moore and Khagram, 2004). Leadership styles influence the process of change, as well as its intensity and effectiveness (Ginter et al., 2018). The development of the mission, vision and values of Prince Sultan Military Medical City was a strategic measure that will help guide its provision of public value.

The improvement of public value and effective leadership should work in harmony to ensure the quality, safety and affordability of healthcare systems (Smith, 2015). Public value theory illuminates crucial details that influence the overall changes associated with public value (Radnor et al., 2016). The world is continually changing through advances in medical equipment technology, digital health innovation and communication, and changes in the administrative paradigm effect change in the public value dimension. Administrative factors influence mechanisms associated with the management of healthcare professionals who, in turn, have a direct effect on the quality and safety of healthcare services provided to the community. 

The vision of Prince Sultan Military Medical City is “to be a centre of excellence in the provision of integrated healthcare and a global leader in the scientific and research field.” The achievement of this vision requires radical change from the traditional administrative system to automate new administrative strategies that address contemporary health needs (Nelson et al., 2015). The creation of public value, confidence and belief will require the updating of the digital healthcare systems associated with the filing, staffing and exchange of patient-related information and the flow of information between healthcare providers and patients. Such internal systems and applications create a gradual efficiency and proficiency in the provision of services by employees in Prince Sultan Military Medical City PSMMC. To achieve the pledge of promoting a conducive environment in which healthcare providers may perform their tasks, a leader of digital health should provide the latest medical innovations and technology, thus ensuring the best medical care and patient satisfaction. This leader should also create training programs that function coherently with the working schedule of the healthcare providers. The achievement of this mission will go a long way in changing the administrative system as advised by public value theory and practices.

As noted in Public value poster, PSMMC’s virtual clinical care centre will be implemented to extend access to healthcare services in rural areas by allowing clinical examination and workforce collaboration to occur anytime, anywhere with the same level of communication across multiple parties as if they are in close proximity to each other. Patients and physicians at PSMMC will be enabled to share medical information and patient symptoms with specialist physicians in real time to provide medical advice and treatment guidance. With this, patients are given the opportunity to share their health issues with remotely located specialised physicians and obtain prompt medical consultation and treatment. Also, local physicians will be able to consult with specially trained physicians as and when required for safe medical practice. Moreover, the centre will help alleviate specific cases in which patients needed a referral to the medical city and experienced long wait times for scheduling appointments with specialist physicians. Remote expert consultation therefore will be eliminated wait times and improved quality of care for residents of rural areas. The virtual clinical care centre is a significant milestone in the process of changing the model of care for PSMMC patients, enhancing quality of care and providing improved healthcare access and continuity of care. In a rural area within a vast country, access to quality healthcare poses a considerable difficulty, and PSMMC will be embarked on a mission to fix that issue, succeeding by considering these difficulties from a public value perspective.

Creating an institution that excels in scientific research requires consistent application of evidence-based healthcare practices. Constant technological innovation makes the acquisition of efficient technological solutions an expensive endeavour due to the regular updates, hardware upgrades and replacements required. A program director’s ability to employ competent employees, especially those specialised in analysing technological trends in health, will be invaluable by assessment and to put them in practical situations to assess technical and theoretical knowledge during the hiring and training processes. Such a competent staff base will be able to offer advice on the equipment and any updates and make suggestions for cost-effective and efficient technological operations. Another important element is conducting stakeholder interviews around the critical problems and concerns faced by various departments and discussing each group’s point of view regarding enhancing the healthcare services and improving operational safety and patient care. Engaging both staff and patients in cooperatively improving healthcare services and promoting public value is crucial, as the patients are part of the process. The reduction of bureaucratic processes in healthcare institutions and the adoption of technology to improve such institutions’ operational processes comprise a significant tool that contributes to immense public value in the dissemination of healthcare services.

The mission of Prince Sultan Military Medical City includes the provision of patient-centred healthcare. To improve public value, the healthcare services provided by an institution have to be in accordance with relevant guidelines and international quality standards such as joint commission international accreditation. Contemporary society has become increasingly focused on the quality and safety of healthcare services, as these are crucial factors that influence the successful delivery of patient-centred healthcare (Moore and Khagram, 2004; Tanenbaum, 2015). Traditionally, the provision of healthcare followed the concept of a doctor-centred system that neglected a patient’s emotional and psychological wellbeing. Evidence-based approaches to healthcare indicate that a patient’s recovery process has a significant dependence on his or her psychological and emotional state in addition to medical treatment. Consequently, healthcare systems must value the patient’s experience, and healthcare providers need to ensure that their practices are genuinely patient-centred to deliver first-rate care and effectively improve patients’ health.

The achievement of proficiency, status and public value in the provision of healthcare requires a professional and eligible workforce that respects the standards of health set by the Ministry of Defence. The management of human resources will be a critical tool in achieving public value (Bercaw, 2017). The author’s pledges are centred in effectively managing people through the suggested automated systems that assist in the flow of information and documentation, as well as in the training of the healthcare workforce regarding recent evidence-based practices that involve drawing more attention to patient-centered services (Brownson et al., 2017). A director of digital health needs to promote a spirit of teamwork as teamwork requires to set clear team objectives, and the team members must be working together towards goals and helping out by giving appropriate and timely feedback and as an essential part of the leadership skills needed to achieve patient-centred healthcare (Tseng and Hicks, 2016). Any health institution must have a significant number of well-trained physicians and nurses to ensure an adequate level of quality of care and the appropriate distribution of patients to healthcare providers.

According to public value poster, Prince Sultan Military Medical City has 30 physicians for every 10,000 patients. This distribution needs improvement to create a personalised care system that allows doctors and patients to communicate on a deeper level. Digital health programs and software are crucial in addressing the current professional gap (Reshidi, 2016). Providing a digital health portal and digital patient applications will promote efficiency in the recording of patients’ medical history and progress and improve patient communication with doctors. However, while this might help offset the limited number of physicians, patients’ emotional and psychological wellbeing may still be lacking due to minimal patient-to-doctor interactions. The management of the digital healthcare system may be a temporary intervention in the longer process of improving both communication between numerous healthcare specialists and the accessibility of patient medical information (Aljuhani and Al-Surimi, 2019). Such a process provides crucial lessons that will help inform future decisions when appropriating resources in a healthcare institution.

The author’s last pledge involves improving healthcare systems by providing efficient and reliable services for patients, such as a patient portal and interactive education. Patient education is a strategic measure that fosters public value and enables a clearer understanding of numerous processes within the healthcare system. Education, notably on the treatment options for a patient’s illness, enables an individual to understand the recent evidence-based practices pertaining to their condition (Alexander and Vladislav, 2015). Patient education increases the public’s confidence level concerning healthcare paradigms and institutions. However, its successful implementation requires the harmonious application of numerous elements, from proper leadership of healthcare providers to the implementation of digital healthcare systems that widen the accessibility of educative information by a wider patient pool (Nica, 2015; Moore and Khagram, 2004). The pledge is in line with the values of Prince Sultan Military Medical City PSMMC due to its emphasis on innovation, respect and putting the needs of the patient first.

Effecting a change in the perception of public value, particularly in healthcare, requires the implementation of numerous concepts with the support of strong leadership, workforce training on patient-centred and evidence-based practices and the application of the dynamics of public value. It is evident that appropriate leadership skills are integral in reaching any aim. Further, the improvement of public value in the contemporary community requires the utilisation of digital technologies that support quality and safety. Aligning the pledges with the mission, vision and values of Prince Sultan Military Medical City was a smart strategy that ensured all-around learning of the dynamics and dimensions involved in the provision of services in the medical city.

By Major. Abdulrhman Alodhayb