Would healthcare be better if everyone understood and applied the five lean principles described in the book Lean Thinking? As part of our team development at the ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value, several of us have embarked on the process of taking the Lean Bronze Certification examination. To prepare, we are studying the various books […]
Jim Marks, the Chief of Staff and Chief of Anesthesia at San Francisco General Hospital (SFGH), in this open letter to his colleagues, details the importance of teaching the principles and thinking behind lean management, the work ahead of his organization, and what they’ve accomplished so far. The shift in thinking required to switch to […]
What do making cars and delivering healthcare have in common? More than you think! Manufacturing and lean principles apply, although the details differ. For instance, making cars and caring for patients both include producing on demand, immediately, defect free, one at a time, without waste or error in an environment that is physically, emotionally and […]
In the past two years I have had the privilege of facilitating sessions with senior leadership teams at more than ten healthcare organizations, with the objective of helping them develop their roadmap to operational excellence, or lean. A number of these teams identified cultural issues as a barrier to transforming their organizations. More importantly, they […]
When we observe leadership behavior long enough, we often witness someone in a high ranking position that could use a slice of humble pie. Because of their position, a leader’s behavior is observed by everyone in the organization. If the leader communicates the wrong way or jumps to the wrong conclusion, everyone knows. And the […]
Nothing like a serious illness to a love one that requires daily visits to a hospital to provide a front seat view of the current state of our healthcare system. My 85-year old mother was going through CRT (combined chemotherapy and radiation treatment) for cancer. At the cancer treatment center, Monday was “infusion day.” Infusion […]
The current way healthcare services are delivered in this country is, at its core, the opposite of lean. Those of us working in the industry need to do much more to become truly patient-centered, or lean, as stated in so many of our mission statements. To elaborate this point, I will focus on “flow and […]
It sounds like a simple idea to change from push to pull. In the months of December and January, many hospitals are in the middle of putting the finishing touches on their annual budget. Thousands of line items, each requiring thought, planning, and measurement are rolled up into a larger set of numbers. Hospital leaders […]
In 2008, as the U.S. economy tanked, Congress passed a $700 billion stimulus package to fund ‘shovel ready projects’ to put Americans back to work and America back on its feet. They specifically designated $30 billion to wire the American healthcare system. The Office of the National Coordinator was created to manage the digital transition […]
I just went to the doctor’s office for my annual physical. In my market, I have to schedule this appointment a year in advance, and there are no automatic reminders. So when a year rolls around, there is always some sort of scheduling conflict that makes me have to reschedule. This time, when I called […]
