S.W.O.T analysis is a proposed strategic analysis tool for healthcare organizations. The issues identified in the S.W.O.T. analysis are classified into four categories. From the internal environment of the service are the strength points, such as accessibility, good level of provided health services, experienced and specialized nursing staff, modern level of technological-biomedical equipment, management oriented to quality procedures, staff satisfaction and the weakness points, such as shortages of human resources and equipment, mental and physical fatigue, non-application of treatment protocols, vague nursing tasks, modest or reduced staff training, worker culture. From the external environment, there are opportunities, start-up and operation of quality assurance systems, awareness of service weaknesses, medical records, volunteering, private forms of hospital funding, multiculturalism, and threats, such as financial and values crisis, bureaucracy in day-to-day management, the presence of a significant number of migrants and uninsured people, health users’ displeasure, private care, change of epidemiological model. The purpose of the article is to highlight the application of the S.W.O.T. analysis as an important tool in the hands of nursing administration, decision-making and shaping a future strategy of health services. S.W.O.T is a useful, but not a stand-alone, strategic planning tool that promises health services to make informed decisions and leave nothing to chance in order to be efficient and competitive.
