Perfecting Patient Journeys
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It would be safe to say that we have a healthcare crisis in this country and that The Affordable Care Act will not be the final answer regarding how to solve it. The crisis is the result of a disturbing trifecta: rising costs, not enough accountability and transparency, and lousy results. We as a country spend more on healthcare than any other industrialized nation and yet we have data that shows that tens of thousands of people die every year in hospitals because of preventable medical errors. We rank 39th in the world for infant mortality and 36th for life expectancy. The good news is there are forward-thinking individuals and organizations scrambling to solve the problem while it can still be solved. PERFECTING PATIENT JOURNEYS (LEI, December 1, 2012) lays out in great detail how to apply lean manufacturing principles to the delivery of healthcare, and the remarkable results they are seeing by doing so. Over the past eight years, the authors of this book have helped healthcare organizations learn how to make real and sustainable change using the value-stream improvement method. Implementing lean thinking has helped healthcare providers develop an adaptive, problem-solving culture with stunning
Improving patient safety, quality, and satisfaction while building problem-solving skills
By Judy Worth, Tom Shuker, Beau Keyte, Karl Ohaus, Jim Luckman, David Verble, Kirk Paluska, and Todd Nickel
results: Reduced annual staff turnover by 20% Average length of stay (LOS) in a large emergency department was reduced by 30% The number of patients who left without being seen (LWOBS) dropped by 60% in the same hospital Customer (patient) satisfaction increased by 73% Operating room changeover time was reduced, which increased the number of surgical procedures performed by 20% PERFECTING PATIENT JOURNEYS is the guide for leaders of healthcare organizations who want to implement lean thinking in their organizations with all of the improvement in the quality and safety that it brings to the delivery of healthcare. Readers will learn how to identify and select a problem in the performance of a specific value stream, define a project scope, and create a shared understanding of what’s occurring in the value stream. Readers will also learn to develop a shared vision of an improved future for healthcare, and hopefully work together to make that vision a reality. The method described here does not rely on huge training budgets or teams of consultants. It focuses on solving real organizational problems, and at the end of the day doing what healthcare organizations and those who labor there aspire to do every day: provide safe, effective, efficient, and timely patient care.