risk management in healthcare

Risk Management in Healthcare
Student Name
Institutional Affiliation
Course Name
Date
Risk Management in Healthcare
Risk management is the process used by organizations to evaluate and assess the threats it faces in the operation of its finances and assets and how the organization can reduce their impact. In healthcare production risks and threats are prevalent because of the nature of healthcare. Risks may be facing the entire health organization, patients or the staff and it is, therefore, necessary for any organization to have risk managers who are capable of monitoring risks and finding a way to mitigate them or make their impact less felt by the organization (Cagliano et al., 2011).
Planning for risk management is essential for any healthcare producer because it offers assurance for continuity and a way out in times of harmful threats. Risk management professionals must have adequate knowledge concerning healthcare finance and any kind of reforms that are necessary so that they can come up with a well-defined plan for risk management. The risk management officer has three main responsibilities that are loss control, claims management and risk financing (Youngberg, 2010). Loss control involves how the manager handles the organization’s resources to ensure that it does not undergo losses or to minimize the degree of losses that the organization makes. Management of claims generally revolves around the defense of malpractice claims especially in cases where there is a law suit filed which requires defense.

Risk financing looks into how the risks are to be funded that is where the resources are to come from that will cover any risk that arises. All these responsibilities call for proper planning for any organization to safeguard the continual provision of its services.
The various types of risks that can occur in healthcare provision include; violent incidents in hospitals which put both the patients and the medical practitioners at risk, healthcare infections, debt accumulation, and financial deficiencies. One of the ways of dealing with risks is having an insurance cover that can cater to such risks. Without proper management, these risks can lead to the collapse of an entire healthcare provider. It is therefore fundamental that each healthcare producer must have a strategic plan on how to deal with risks so as to be able to experience a sustained existence and a healthy relationship with the people receiving services from the organization.
References
Cagliano, A. C., Grimaldi, S., & Rafele, C. (2011). A systemic methodology for risk management in healthcare sector. Safety Science, 49(5), 695-708.
Youngberg, B. J. (Ed.). (2010). Principles of risk management and patient safety. Jones & Bartlett Publishers.