Caring for Our Children Discussion Paper
Caring for Our Children Discussion Paper
University Memorial Hospitals (UMH) has been experiencing a challenge emanating from the lack of affordable and effective daycare facilities nearby where its employees can take their children conveniently. Consequently, the employees have expressed a reduction in morale and increased rate of absenteeism. In order to perform optimally, UMH needs to find a suitable solution to the issue. The proposed solution is to establish a daycare facility nearby as a joint venture with a large state university. In this regard, this paper describes five main expectations of the stakeholders towards the venture. Further, the paper explains ways in which data can be gathered in order to monitor the performance of the facility so as to meet stakeholders’ expectations. Caring for Our Children Discussion Paper
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Expectations of the Stakeholders
The first expectation is that the daycare facility will provide the parents with affordable services. As expressed in the concerns of the employees in the case study, the available daycare facilities are too expensive. In order to meet the expectations related to pricing, it is vital to consider the charges of the existing daycare facilities as well as all the expenses and costs that are involved in the processes of developing and running the new facility. The second expectation is convenience, as expressed in the concerns of the employees. In order to enhance convenience, the new facility should be located at a place that is as close as possible to the places where the parents work (Breiner, Ford & Gadsden, 2016). If it will target parents working in UHM and the state university, a convenient location can be between the two organizations. Caring for Our Children Discussion Paper
The third expectation to the parents, the government, the wider community and other stakeholders is that the new facility will provide quality daycare services. In order to achieve this, the facility will need to have well trained management and employees, equipment and other requirements (Breiner et al., 2016). The management and the employees should be able to provide the expected support to the children and to embrace diversity. One of the issues raised in the case study is that the number of the parents in need of the daycare services is large. Thus, the components of the facility, including the human resources, equipment and playing tools and devices, should be enough to support a large number of children.
The fourth expectation is that the new facility will be able to meet the compensation and other needs of the staff, administrators and other internal stakeholders. For instance, the facility should be able to give competitive salary to the employees, provide them with other necessary benefits and establish ways of motivating them. The last expectation is that the facility should adhere to all the government requirements (Breiner et al., 2016). For instance, the new facility should have a license from the state government that is needed to operate. The facility should pay taxes to the government as required. In addition, the daycare facility should establish a safe environment for the children.
Gathering Data to Monitor the Performance
In order to fulfil the expectations of the stakeholders, it is vital to establish ways of gathering information that will facilitate effective monitoring of the performance of the facility and address any issues noted. One of the strategies of gathering data is to continuously gather and analyze the views of parents regarding the services offered by the daycare. The parents can explain their views toward the quality, charges and convenience of the services (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2011). The new facility should establish a communication channel through which the parents can send their views and concerns. Through the same channel, the parents can be interviewed or asked to fill a survey questionnaire in order to have a comprehensive data about their views and experiences.
The second strategy is to gather information about the competitors frequently. For instance, the information about the charges of the competitors for the daycare services can help to determine whether or not the new facility is overcharging. The information about the compensation and other benefits given to the employees can be compared with those of the competitors. In order to determine the quality of the services, it is vital to check the hygiene and safety of the environment in the facility (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2011). Visiting the caregivers as they provide the services and monitoring the changes in the responses of the children can also give a hint about the quality of services. Also, visiting the facility will give a hint about the number of staff and their qualifications and other important aspects such as nutrition (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2011). The information about the adherence to the government requirements can be assessed from the organization. Caring for Our Children Discussion Paper
Conclusion
Overall, UMH can consider developing its own daycare facility or as a joint venture with the state university. When establishing it, the leaders of UMH should consider the expectations of the stakeholders about high quality, convenience and affordability of services, availability or presence of the required resources and adherence to government requirements. In order to meet the requirements of the stakeholders, efforts should be made to gather data from the parents, the facility, competitors and other stakeholders through the most suitable strategies.
References
American Academy of Pediatrics (2011). Caring for Our Children: National Health and Safety
Performance Standards: Guidelines for Early Care and Early Education Programs. American Academy of Pediatrics
Breiner, H., Ford, M., & Gadsden, V. L. (2016). Parenting Matters: Supporting Parents of
Children Ages 0-8. Washington, DC: National Academies Press
Caring for Our Children Discussion Paper
