Project Management Plan

Activities Defined
Most of the activities provided in the sequencing of activities chart are self-explanatory. The definitions provided below are for those activities that need further clarification. Evaluation and recommendations: Determine what the new HIPAA policies and procedures entail and determine the resources needed to train the staff accordingly. Develop Project Charter: This is a document to provide the scope of the HIPAA training, and defines identifies the stakeholders. This document also defines roles and responsibilities of the various people associated with the project. Milestones: These are important dates and events that are essential to the project’s success. Each of the above documents are made by the project manager as a means to help the project run smoothly and for referencing as needed. It is essential that each participant understand his or her roles and responsibilities to ensure success. The project manager is responsible to ensure appropriate communication. Human Resource Plan

It is important to have a human resource plan to ensure all employees are up to par with the new HIPAA guidelines. The plan is broken down in the following order; determine HIPAA requirements and resources needed, design a training program, develop training materials, implement new requirements, evaluate compliance after training, and retrain if necessary. The HR team must be available for questions or concerns and must ensure compliance so as not to waste company time or resources. If there are compliance issues, retraining must be considered or disciplinary action as required (Dugan, 2014). Communication with Executive Leadership

The executive leadership has little involvement in this project except to approve the project charter and approve funding. The project manager can best communicate using interactive communication over a conference call on the phone. Communication with Human Resources

The project manager can help lay down the groundwork for the project by using interactive communication to gain understanding of the demands of the project with the HR department. The idea is to determine the disciplines, departments, and specialties that will be involved in the project. Interactive communication is between two or more parties performing a multidirectional exchange of information (Project Management Institute, 2013). This is an efficient way to make sure a common understanding takes place to provide a solid platform on which to build the project. Project Manager Communication to stakeholders

The project manager has a lot of information to give out to various stakeholders. The main method of communication for such a large audience is push communication. This ensures that communication is distributed to all appropriate parties. Push communication comes in the form of emails, memos, and reports. The downfall to using this method is it is difficult to tell if the information is understood by the intended recipient or if it was received (Project Management Institute, 2013). However, this communication is preferred because it allows information to reach many people at once.

Although, it is wise for the project manager to follow up before important milestones to ensure the appropriate parties understand their roles in the project. With all this said, there are times when other methods of communication are more suitable depending on the circumstance. The project manager must use their knowledge and skills to determine the best communication styles according to the circumstances. Communication with Legal Personnel

As with HR, interactive communication is an effective method for legal personnel. The legal personnel is the party responsible for creating and conducting the training sessions for each staffing group and are involved in nearly every aspect of the project. Essentially, they are the backbone of the project. They will conduct training sessions for each staffing group via PowerPoint and printed handouts during each session. Push communication is also effective, after the initial training session. This is done by the distribution of memos, notes, and follow up emails. The project manager will also communicate with the legal personnel throughout the course of the project by meeting with them regularly to ensure everything is running smooth and to help relieve concerns. Communication with staffing groups

The training is broken down according staffing groups. The groups are broken down as follows; nurses and doctors, office managers, records specialists, administrative assistants, and transcriptionists. This means the trainers must create five separate training sessions and handouts. Once again, interactive communication in the form of meetings is the best way to communicate initially. However, pull communication is effective after the training is complete. Pull communication is used for large volumes of data and requires that each staff member access information at their discretion (Project Management Institute, 2013). This comes in the form of the handouts given during the meeting and additional follow up using the HIPAA website. The HIPAA website has additional information and refresher options for staff to use at their leisure. This provides a great resource when the trainers are no longer available. Communication with Patients

After all training is complete and the new policies and procedures are implemented, it is essential that patients of the clinic receive a notice of changes that directly affect them. The legal personnel are responsible for creating pamphlets to hand out to patients. There can be serious legal repercussions if this is missed, so the project manager must ensure the pamphlets are made and given out as needed. Conclusion

As one can see, this project requires a lot from the project manager and legal personnel. It is essential that the medical association staff understand the new policies and procedures of HIPAA because remaining compliant with the federal government is extremely important to ensure company reputation remains intact. This project requires a lot of organization and communication from the project manager to ensure all staff are trained appropriately and remain compliant.

References
Duggan, T. (2014). Small Business. Retrieved from Chron: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/plan-human-resource-training-program-organization-setting-2553.html Project Management Institute. (2013). Chapter 10 – Project Communications Management. 5th. Retrieved from PMI: http://mmlviewer.books24x7.com/book/id_51356/viewer.asp?bookid=51356&chunkid=674949737&endofproduct=1