Facility planning plays an essential role in healthcare by recognizing that every decision made during planning directly affects an organization’s assets and needs. The steps of facility planning play a significant role as they help in conducting a study, developing a budget, organizing a planning committee, setting realistic goals, studying the financial marketplace, and getting the right individuals for the project. According to Hayward (2016), the significant steps involved in facility planning include understanding the conditions, situation, facilities, and expectations; analysis of the needs and required changes; planning, and executing the approved plan. The first step, understanding, encompasses a thorough knowledge of a health organization’s goals, values, and mission (Hayward, 2016). A thorough understanding of the organization’s current situation is essential in the analysis of its needs. The second step, analysis, encompasses analytical techniques, such as scenario planning, SLP, SCAN, or SWOT analysis, to explore possible triggers and futures and analyze the organization’s facility needs (Hayward, 2016). The third step, planning, involves the development of plans that address the organization’s long-range needs. The last step, executing the plan, consists of planning activities and implementing the strategic facility plan.
Pre-design planning plays a vital role in the facility design process by addressing various questions to help provide a clearer vision of a project’s opportunities and challenges (Wolper, 2004). It occurs after the availability of funding and before the commencement of the design process. Pre-design planning involves analyzing requirement issues, the proposed site’s constraints and opportunities, and the project’s cost versus its budget. In healthcare organizations, the primary activities occurring during the pre-design phase include the launch of a capital planning campaign, the determination of financial feasibility, the development and establishment of the project team, the integration of community engagement and collaboration in the planning process, engaging neighborhood leadership, acquisition of property and site control, researching requirements, and refining the budget (Hayward, 2016).
When determining whether to renovate or replace a healthcare facility, it is essential to consider the availability of funds, the existence of space, the immediacy of the facility’s needs, and its long-term goals (Wolper, 2004). A functional needs assessment will play a significant role in understanding what is best for the healthcare facility because it will provide quantitative answers that will be used to determine if the healthcare organization needs to be renovated or replaced.
References
Hayward, C. (2016). Healthcare facility planning: Thinking strategically. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.
Wolper, L. F. (2004). Health care administration: Planning, implementing, and managing organized systems. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.
Part B
The software program I can use to create a floor plan is SketchUp. It is considered one of the most popular 3D modeling and design tools. Additionally, it is easy to use. SketchUp helps draft floor plans and model 3D versions that allow an individual to look at a space from different viewpoints. I will choose SketchUp due to its capability to develop 3D models and floor plans quickly. Additionally, its intuitive ease of ease makes it the best choice. The software program has mobile viewing, cloud storage and integration capabilities, which means that the faculty member will access my project remotely, as the program allows this.
