VA Pittsburgh Definition of TPS

VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, Toyota Production System

Here is a nice succinct definition of the Veteran’s Affairs hospital production system in Pittsburgh. It draws on the work of Spear and Bowen and their “Decoding the DNA” definition of TPS.

The definition lists the technical tools of Lean, but more importantly includes this gem:

Every worker is viewed as having the right to perform meaningful work under the guidance of a teacher to meet customer needs.

The Toyota Production System is a system: its parts and organizing principles depend on each other to work. Thus TPS must be implemented as a system in order to function.

Lean as a system, respect for people — very important concepts if you’re using Lean or thinking Lean.

About LeanBlog.org: Mark Graban is a consultant, author, and speaker in the “lean healthcare” methodology, focused on improving quality and patient safety, improving access, reducing costs, and fully engaging healthcare professionals. He is also the Chief Improvement Officer for KaiNexus.