NEJM Authors Double Down on Their Claim That #Lean & TPS = Taylorism
You might remember the hubbub (and my earlier blog post) about this article that somehow appeared in the NEJM:…
A Post-Mortem on a Different Hospital Lean Journey
Today's post is an addendum from Saturday's post on the apparent death of a health system Lean program: "Why Would…
How Failed Lean Implementations Are Like a Bad Home Theater System
Alternate title: “Lean is an Integrated System. Of Course Just Implementing Pieces Leads to Failure.” Throughout…
The Shared Interests & Goals of Lean and the Patient Safety Movement
Later today and tomorrow, I'll be attending the annual World Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit that's…
Key Points About Kaizen from Japanese Hospitals, Going Back in December
I've gone to Japan twice now with Kaizen Institute to study Lean with healthcare professionals from around the…
Throwback Thursday: “This American Life” on NUMMI Lessons,…
Episode #403 of the public radio program "This American Life" originally aired in 2010, telling the story of the…
On Vacation Through July 15 – Here’s Some Recommended Reading &…
It's time for vacation, which means two weeks away from the blog. There is a physical vacation taking place, to…
Throwback Thursday: Be Lean, not L.A.M.E.
Today's post is a throwback to an essay that I originally wrote for the excellent book Lean-Led Hospital Design:…
Podcast #221 – @JacobStoller, “The #Lean CEO”
My guest for episode #221 is Jacob Stoller, author of a book that was just released: The Lean CEO:…
Lean Factories and Lean Hospitals Are Safer and They’re Better Listeners
When we introduce the idea of Lean to healthcare organizations, it's very common for somebody (often a senior…
Lessons from the Football Coaching and Leadership Styles of the Oregon Ducks and…
Note: Today is the fifth anniversary of the Haiti earthquake. Russell Maroni's journal from his volunteer work…
A Hotel, Time Quotas, Systemic Problems, and Employees Not Having the Right Tools
I travel a lot and, thanks to my work, I'm pretty well attuned to the idea of not blaming individuals for systemic…
Good Ideas, Lean Ideas, Keep Crossing the Pacific
The ideas, principles, and methods that we'd recognize as "Lean" aren't exclusively of Japanese origin. Many of us,…
Words vs. Simple Visuals; A Secret About Japanese Hospitals
This tweet and photo made me chuckle the other day...
If it's "your right" or "your left" as you're going up or…
#Ebola – The Glaring Gap Between Staff Education and Proper, Effective…
I saw this headline the other day: "U.S. Soldiers Get Just Four Hours of Ebola Training"
The phrase "just four…
Why “More Nurses” Isn’t the Best Way to Solve What Ails…
There are certainly many serious problems in healthcare. Let's look at nursing, in particular. It's a rewarding…
What They’re Saying Now about Lean Healthcare in Saskatchewan
There have been plenty of headlines and updates since I first blogged about the controversy over Lean healthcare in…
Why Toyota is Eliminating the Andon Cord from its Factories
If you clicked on my intentionally attention grabbing headline (or what might be a parody of those)... no, Toyota…