Strategy in Health and Medicine

Strategy is defined as a directed course of action which seeks to identify, pursue, and achieve a desired outcome, usually involving the securing of one or more competitive advantages. It is long-range in focus and dictates the overall direction of organizations for enduring periods of time. Few elements of organizational life are as impactful as strategy on institutional operations. Complexities associated with the healthcare industry and the ever-changing environments of health and medical institutions demand that providers carefully plot courses aimed at reaching desired destinations. Without an understanding of where an establishment is going, coupled with a roadmap for actually getting there, organizational pursuits are nothing more than exercises in futility. Through strategy, healthcare providers are afforded with critical tools and techniques permitting them to guide their institutions through often tumultuous circumstances and situations to successfully achieve their missions and realize their associated aspirations. Behind every successful healthcare organization, one will find capable strategists responsible for guiding and directing their given institutions to points of prosperity. This chapter aims to assist readers in acquiring associated skills and abilities.