TL;DR: Long before Lean and Kaizen became common language in healthcare, Don Berwick argued in a 1989 New England Journal of Medicine article that improvement requires leaders to stop blaming “bad apples” and start fixing systems. His message–replace fear with learning, inspection with improvement, and punishment with partnership–remains a powerful reminder of what Kaizen in healthcare was always meant to be. I’ve blogged before about Dr. Donald M. (Don) Berwick, the founder of the Institute … Continue reading Dr. Don Berwick on Kaizen in Healthcare: Ahead of His Time (1989)