Making Information Technology Work: Maximizing the Benefits for Health Care Organizations

Roger Kropf, PhD

Purchase NOW!

For a PDF brochure, click here.

250 pages, softcover, 6" x 9"
AHA Order Number: 093001
ISBN: 978-1-55648-349-3
AHA Member Price: $55.00
Nonmember Price: $69.00

A book for senior executives, managers and clinicians that covers the "before, during and after" stages of a health care information technology (IT) project and provides guidance on how projects can be successfully managed. It shows readers how to assess IT project value before approval, monitor whether projects are on-time and on-budget, and measure performance after implementation. Case studies and effective project management tools and techniques help readers maximize project benefits.

A Logical Approach to Successful Project Execution

Kropf and Scalzi take a three-part approach that makes it easy for non-IT executives and managers to assess a project's development from start to finish. The approach follows the three benefits this book delivers to readers:

1. assistance in participating in the selection and implementation of IT projects within a hospital, health system, or physician group practice;
2. specific knowledge about value assessment, project management and performance measurement for health care IT project implementation; and
3. case study examples describing effective practices in health care organizations.

The book helps answer questions like:

"How do we decide which IT project to invest in, and should we make the investment?"
"What effective project management techniques exist, and how do we use them?"
"What information should we expect to see during an IT project implementation?"
"What value should we expect, and how do we measure the outcomes?

Three Sections That Work Together

The three sections of the book follow the logical progression of an IT project development. Part I  focuses on how quantitative and qualitative benefits on operational and clinical projects can be estimated before making an investment. It looks at the financial impact, process improvements, and intangible benefits (e.g., improved patient and staff satisfaction) of the investment. A number of benefits study methods and methods for carrying out financial analysis are described. The steps in creating a business plan to support a recommendation are defined, and methods for assessing value are explained and illustrated with case studies.

Part II reviews the components of project management. This includes scope, time, cost, communications and integration management. The need for a project management office (PMO) that monitors the efficiency of the project and whether operational, financial and clinical objectives are being met is explained. Different types of project and portfolio management software are described, as are considerations that should be noted before making a purchase. The book contains tools that can help managers approve or modify requests for changes in timelines and resources, and case studies and examples are also presented.

Part III explores what should happen after an IT implementation. It describes how a post-implementation audit can be carried out by comparing pre- and post-implementation performance, conducting time and motion studies, and studying pilot installations. Audits help determine whether the expected benefits have been achieved and increase the chances of success for subsequent projects. The book covers different types of service level agreements (SLAs) between external vendors or an internal IT department, as well as how they can be negotiated, measured and used. Case studies of effective practices are presented.

Table of Contents

List of Figures and Tables
About the Authors
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Case Study No. 1
Part I — Estimating Benefits and Making the Business Case for Information Technology
Chapter 1 — Estimating Benefits
Chapter 2 — Financial Analysis
Chapter 3 — Creating a Business Case for a Major Information Technology Investment
Case Study No. 2
Part II — Project Management During Implementation
Chapter 4 — What Is Project Management?
Chapter 5 — Project Management Offices
Chapter 6 — Project and Portfolio Management Software
Appendix  — Summary of Other Project Management Knowledge Areas
Part III — Performance Management After Implementation
Chapter 7 — Post-Implementation Audits
Chapter 8 — Benefits Realization
Chapter 9 — Service Level Agreements:
A Tool for Negotiating and Sustaining Performance
Case Study No. 3 & No. 4
Index

Reviewer Comments

"...an excellent resource covering all the bases ... a must read for CEOs, CFOs, and COOs in health care."
George A. Vecchione,  President and CEO, Lifespan, Providence, RI

"An incredibly useful how-to book that fits the needs of multiple levels of the organization. Readable and useful for both the generalist and the IT expert in analyzing whether to invest in a program as well as measuring outputs."
Bruce Schroffel, President and CEO, University of Colorado Hospital, Aurora, CO

"...gives health care managers the logic and structure they need to achieve successful IT implementations...provides tools valuable to those who need to bring projects in on time, on budget, and on target."
Alexander Szafran, Director, Radiology Services, Maine Medical Center, Portland, ME

"...a powerful combination of theory and practice, supplemented with illustrative case studies...show(s) the how and why, as well as the process for assessing results. The information is invaluable to all members of the Health IT planning team."
Martin S. Kohn, MD, MS, CPE, Senior Managing Consultant, IBM Healthlink Solutions, Jericho, NY

"...an invaluable guide to the fundamentals of properly managing technology-related investments. Health care executives should read this book."
Steven Heck, Managing Director, Navigant Consulting, Inc., Chicago, IL

About the Authors

Roger Kropf, PhD, is a professor in the Health Policy and Management Program at New York University's Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. He teaches graduate and executive education courses on information technology. More information on his work can be found at his Web site, www.nyu.edu/classes/kropf.

Guy Scalzi, MBA, is Executive VP of Veloz Global Solutions. From 1999 to 2006, he was Senior VP and Managing Director of FCG's Group Management Services business. He has held the position of CIO at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital, New York/Cornell Medical Center, and the Hospital for Joint Diseases, a division of New York University Medical Center.