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The board of directors, senior leaders, and physicians all play an essential role in healthcare organizations' leadership and strategic planning. The board of directors is the governing body that makes policy decisions and works to develop a strategic plan consistent with healthcare organizations' mission and vision (Harrison, 2016). Decisions made by the board of directors guide organizations' futures. Additionally, the board of directors must understand the fundamental issues in healthcare to meet the ethical and legal responsibilities in healthcare organizations' oversight while being responsible for the quality of care and financial integrity (Wilson & Claypool, 1994).

Senior leaders include the chief executive officer (CEO), the chief financial officer (CFO), the chief nursing officer (CNO), and the chief information officer (CIO). The CEO is the highest-ranking executive in organizations and is accountable for strategic planning and managing operations (Harrison, 2016). CEOs must work closely with other senior leaders, the board of directors to ensure future goals, objectives are discussed, and a plan is set to make them happen. CEOs work to promote quality, patient safety, and compliance within organizations. CFOs are responsible for all financial activities with a healthcare organization. CFOs are involved in healthcare organizations' strategic planning because they project the workload and provide financial data (Harrison, 2016). Chief nursing officers (CNOs) provide a valuable perspective on resource allocation and quality improvement, which aids in strategic planning (Harrison, 2016). The chief information officer (CIO) oversees the information technology operations. The CIO has a critical role in the strategic planning process because they manage information and the use of information systems (Harrison, 2016).

Physicians also play an essential role in healthcare organizations' leadership and strategic planning. Often, healthcare organizations have a chief medical officer (CMO) who is accountable for improving patient care quality and medical staff recruitment. Other physician leaders and the CMO work together to create strategic competencies, allocating resources, and develop new clinical services, which improve performance, efficiency, and quality of care (Harrison, 2016). It is challenging to find a CMO who fits into an organizations' culture and possesses leadership competencies that can add value to organizations (Byrnes, 2013).

The mission statement states an organizations' purpose or reason for being. The mission statement of healthcare organizations' is somewhat determined by ownership status, which helps shape the mission of healthcare organizations' (Harrison, 2016). An organizations' leadership team will use the mission statement to decide priorities, actions, and responsibilities when developing a strategic plan (Harrison, 2016). The mission statement is just one of the guidelines used by leadership teams to strive towards providing high-quality care, reducing costs, and maintaining quality healthcare.

1. In healthcare organizations attempts to enhance their leadership, what are the roles of the board of directors, senior leaders, and physicians? Does the healthcare organization's mission statement guide the organization's leadership team?