My mother passed away recently. As her children reminisced about her life, we recognized that one of the biggest gifts she had given us was her practical wisdom. This wisdom came in the form of countless proverbs with which she would admonish or help us, some more well-known than others, such as, “don’t saddle the […]
This year I attended the 5th Annual Lean Healthcare Transformation Summit, and I was excited to hear James Hereford, COO at Stanford University Medical Center give his keynote presentation. He had a lot to share, and I had a lot to learn. First, Hereford explained that lean is nothing new. Henry Ford was following lean […]
Recently, I was skimming through travel websites in search of the most scenic route to take from my home town in northeast Wisconsin to a location in southern Indiana where our bi-annual family reunion will be held next month. We have made this trip a number of times and are ready to look out the […]
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation published an article earlier this month about the efforts in Wisconsin to move from the traditional fee-for-service model of paying for healthcare, to more innovative, cost-effective methods. Two Wisconsin healthcare organizations, ThedaCare and Bellin Health, joined forces in 2011to form a Pioneer ACO (Accountable Care Organization) under the CMS Shared […]
Earlier this month I had the opportunity to observe and capture video of the Seattle Children’s Hospital’s surgical department’s patient flow. Beginning at the hospital’s entrance, the Surgery Center’s system is designed to lead the patient through the process step-by-step, from start to finish. A surgical nurse commented, “Because everything flows in one direction, it […]
By Marta Karlov, Education Director, ThedaCare Center for HealthCare Value From the flurry of activity in the lean healthcare world, one would conclude that the adaptation of lean methods is commonplace in healthcare. New consulting organizations are born every day, major universities are offering degree programs, experienced healthcare systems are opening their doors to visitors, and […]
In the spring of 2008, the leadership at ThedaCare recognized they were on the cusp of a necessary cultural shift. Furthermore, the changes that were coming, based on a series of management experiments, required a deep understanding of how problems were being solved and how decisions were being made. Like most health systems that were […]
By: Julie Bartels and Mike Stoecklein At the ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value, we see our mission as transformation of the healthcare system to assure the delivery of consistent, high quality care, and better outcomes for patients. We envision achieving this transformation in collaboration with patients and leaders in the provider, employer, insurer, and government […]
A recent Wall Street Journal article speaks of a time during the 1920’s when airlines began to offer excellent customer service in the form of personal headphones that tuned in AM stations, seats made of comfortable wicker, and windows that could be opened (for easy waste disposal). In 1929, one airline even offered in-flight movies. […]
Gary Kaplan, Virginia Mason; George Bo-Linn, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation; Pascale Carayon, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Peter Pronovost, Johns Hopkins University; William Rouse, Stevens Institute of Technology; Proctor Reid, National Academy of Engineering; and Robert Saunders, Institute of Medicine1 Although the U.S. health system excels in several areas, its overall performance remains uneven in terms […]
