The assumption that a system will operate in a stable
environment without risk is not realistic (Sales et al., 2018).
Risk is widely classified into disruption and operational risks
(Kleindorfer & Saad, 2005; Tang, 2006). Extreme uncertainty and
the absence of synchronization between supply and demand are linked
to operational risks while circumstances such as labor strikes,
terrorist attacks, and natural calamities are related to disruption
risks (Lockamy & McCormack, 2010). The probability of human
injury or even death is high in disruptions such as multi-casualty
disasters which brings about the challenge of increased pressure on
healthcare. Healthcare institutions are required to become capable
of understanding and adapting to environmental changes to mitigate
such unexpected changes. These unexpected changes can affect the
competitiveness, responsiveness and operating procedures of a firm
significantly (Huang, Yen, & Liu, 2014), and for healthcare
institutions, the economic well-being and reputation of the nation
as well.
There is a growing need for healthcare institutions to develop
responsiveness (Tolf, Nyström, Tishelman, Brommels, & Hansson,
2015; Vissers, Bertrand, & De Vries, 2001). However, the
responsiveness of healthcare systems remains a complex, distinct
and still not adequately investigated concept (Brinkerhoff &
Bossert, 2013; Cleary, Molyneux, & Gilson, 2013; Gilson,
Palmer, & Schneider, 2005; Siddiqi et al., 2009). Responsive
healthcare systems anticipate and adjust to meet evolving
requirements, exploiting opportunities to enhance access to
effective interventions and to enhance health services (Hanefeld,
Powell-Jackson, & Balabanova, 2017; Lodenstein, Dieleman,
Gerretsen, & Broerse, 2013), ultimately resulting in
improvements in outcomes of healthcare (Allotey, Davey, &
Reidpath, 2014; Smith, Mossialos, Papanicolas, & Leatherman,
2009). A better understanding of healthcare responsiveness is
particularly important for many nations with low and medium incomes
such as Ghana, where economic and social development is rapidly
advancing.
Nevertheless, responsiveness always implies that a flexible
central system exists (More & Babu, 2008). Flexibility is
required to respond quickly to the rapidly changing unique patient
needs and demands (Aronsson, Abrahamsson, & Spens, 2011;
Peltokorpi, Torkki, & Lillrank, 2011). Flexibility remains an
expensive and challenging capability to develop and incorporate in
any system completely. Identifying the right flexibility
capabilities to develop can efficiently improve responsiveness to
meet changing needs and demands of healthcare patients (Aronsson et
al., 2011; Peltokorpi et al., 2011). Moreover, flexible scheduling
and resources can help healthcare institutions respond more
effectively to their patients by better matching the variable
demand for care with the supply of physical resources such as beds,
pharmaceutical, people and space required (Chen, Zhou, Ma, &
Pham, 2011; Laker, Froehle, Lindsell, & Ward, 2014).
Researchers have asserted that flexibility can be proactively
employed as well to create a competitive advantage for a business
(Chang, Yang, Cheng, & Sheu, 2003; Ettlie & Penner-Hahn,
2008; D. M. Upton, 2008). Profitable flexibility applications have
been demonstrated in various ways: by the National Bicycle
Industrial Company (Moffat, 1990), and by the General Motors '
Lordstown factory experiment (Kasarda and Rondinelli, 1998).
Flexibility is clearly of the utmost significance (J. H. M.
Manders, Caniëls, & Ghijsen, 2017) to the responsiveness of
healthcare institutions, the economy, patient satisfaction and yet
significant amount of existing literature focuses on the
manufacturing sector (Chang, Chen, Lin, Tien, & Sheu, 2006;
Jack & Raturi, 2002; Koste, Malhotra, & Sharma, 2004), with
little or no attention to the service sector..
However, understanding the impact of specific flexibility
capabilities and their application is critical to organizations as
flexibility is expensive to implement; hence any investment in
flexibility based on wrongly considered competences might be
(Gerwin, 2008; Narasimhan, Talluri, & Das, 2004). There is also
a paucity of studies concerning flexibility capabilities relating
to operations of healthcare institutions. The quality of care and
satisfaction with health facilities have been seen in most research
as the perfect measure of assessing health systems performance.
However, the WHO suggests responsiveness as a better measure of the
performance of health systems (NB Valentine et al., 2003).
Healthcare institutions are challenged by many sources of
uncertainty in the supply chain and at an operational level. Though
supply chain and operations flexibilities have the potential to
promote the resilience and responsiveness of healthcare
institutions, the scarcity of the literature in this respect makes
this study worthwhile. As a result of limited literature at
present, little knowledge exists on the extent to which supply
chain and operations flexibilities individually promote
responsiveness, or impact customer satisfaction, particularly
within the service sector in Ghana.
Required:
a) Propose an appropriate research title whch will adequately
capture the research gaps and issues discussed.
b) Propose FOUR (4) research objectives which will reflect the
research issues discussed.
c) Propose FOUR (4) research questions which will satisfy the
research issues discussed.