Look how a single candle can both defy and define the darkness." – Anne Frank
As healthcare institutions continue to increase activity around providers exiting the industry, unionization, and strikes, workplace engagement and well-being have become a key focus as healthcare institutions still try to recover from the drastic changes that COVID-19 required of healthcare institutions. One of the primary reasons for the above organizational challenges is that providers are burned out due to being overworked or needing more training to accomplish their jobs effectively, efficiently, and safely. However, there is hope to help reduce these feelings in exchange for more optimism for a brighter future. Continue reading →
“Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.” - Wayne W. Dyer
Change can be hard. This isn’t necessarily a revelation, but instead a painful reality for many of us. We make New Year’s resolutions that we don’t keep, we have health goals that we can’t meet, and we have personal development goals that feel impossible to reach despite our sincere commitment and effort. In frustration, it’s easy to become resigned and think that “maybe this is as good as I get.” Continue reading →
Whether we aim to be a “Lean” hospital or have a culture of safety (or, ideally, both), this level of excellence is built upon a culture of continuous improvement. As Greg Jacobson, MD, an emergency medicine physician, and CEO of KaiNexus says:
“We cannot have a culture of continuous improvement without a culture of learning from mistakes.”
Being able to learn from mistakes requires not just problem-solving skills, but also a culture of psychological safety.
We cannot solve problems unless the team and leaders are aware of them. What happens when medical professionals are afraid to speak up about mistakes, problems, or opportunities for improvement? Or if they just think speaking up won’t change anything? Continue reading →
This is the final blog in a four-part series focused on sustaining lean transformation in healthcare organizations. To read the previous blog posts in the series, please follow the links below:
The rate of change in the business of healthcare has been extraordinarily fast in the past two decades.
The shift to electronic medical records, mergers that create giant health systems, nationwide plans to insure more (or less) people – all these systemic transformations get rolled out with a hopeful promise that healthcare will be better for everyone.
These promises have not been followed with meaningful reporting of metrics or significant results. Continue reading →
This is the third blog in a four-part series focused on sustaining lean transformation in healthcare organizations. To read the previous blog posts in the series, please follow the links below:
The critical step for any leader interested in Lean is to look beyond the tools and, instead, consider the following four core elements designed to help an organization and its leadership team to effectively implement a sustainable Lean management system.
Guest blog post from Jeremiah Hargrave - Director, Quality and Organizational Improvement at Torrance Memorial Medical Center
Weapon: a thing designed or used to inflict harm or damage, a means of gaining an advantage or defending oneself in a conflict or contest.
Would you categorize your PI tools as weapons? I definitely would. We use these tools in our quest to fight against waste and create value for our customers. They are weapons that help us make inefficiencies visible, think about a problem differently and identify bottlenecks. When used in the spirit of continuous improvement, tools are some of the best weapons we have to help teams improve processes. Our conflict with waste is never ending and we need to use every weapon at our disposal to gain an advantage. Continue reading →
Catalysis' internship program gives college students the opportunity to attend our annual Lean Healthcare Transformation Summit, learn about lean in healthcare, and make valuable connections to healthcare leaders and practitioners. We see this program as one way to invest in the future of healthcare by educating and connecting the next generation of healthcare leaders. This blog is from one of our interns, Landon Card (pictured right).
When I arrived at the Summit in Chicago, I didn’t know what to expect. Coming from a suburb in Iowa, the crazy traffic and constant honking of Chicago had me on high alert. After I parked, I made the one block trek to the hotel where I was greeted with a warm smile by Angela, who guided both me and my buddy Will Bickel throughout the whole process. I checked into my room, and immediately felt relaxed. The city seemed completely separate from the inside of the hotel. Continue reading →
Catalysis' internship program gives college students the opportunity to attend our annual Lean Healthcare Transformation Summit, learn about lean in healthcare, and make valuable connections to healthcare leaders and practitioners. We see this program as one way to invest in the future of healthcare by educating and connecting the next generation of healthcare leaders. This blog is from one of our interns, Will Bickel (pictured left).
Going into the Catalysis Summit I was not sure what to expect, however, I had two personal goals of what I wanted to get out of the experience. I wanted to have conversations with as many healthcare professionals as possible and develop my leadership skills. Both of these goals are important to me as I look to explore the healthcare field as a potential career and I want to continue growing as a leader. Continue reading →
Over the last three years, the healthcare community has found innovative and resourceful ways to not only combat challenges, but also thrive and grow. That is why the theme for this year’s Lean Healthcare Transformation Summit was Learn, Share, Connect: Accelerating change during dynamic times. Our presenters shared about developing their teams, building a resilient and equitable culture within organizations, and transforming both operations and systems. Continue reading →
This is the second blog in a four-part series focused on sustaining lean transformation in healthcare organizations. To read the previous blog post in the series, please follow the link below:
American educator and author, Reed B. Markham, once said, “If you are standing still, you are also going backwards. It takes great effort to maintain forward movement.” Continue reading →
