Follow Royal’s example on waiting lists, hospitals told – Liverpool Daily Post.co.uk Nice story from here in the UK (where I am right now), about an NHS hospital in Liverpool reducing surgery patient backlogs and delays through Lean. From the…
I got a question from a reader and Theory of Constraints fan: “One of the topics that I’m struggling with is the relationship between Kaizen and TOC. When Norman Bodek talks about the savings people have gotten through Kaizen, does…
Thanks to a Lean Blog reader, Matt, for sending this first-hand account. I’m sorry he (and his wife) had to go through this experience. This is posted with his permission. I’ll buck convention a bit and put my comments in…
Patients get appointments for Botox faster than for moles: study You might expect that a doctor’s office either takes appointments in terms of: FIFO (first into the queue, first out — first called, first seen) OR Triage priority (more serious…
‘Surgery should be halted’ to clear hospital backlog Sub-optimizing decisions are a fairly universal human behavior, regardless of the industry (or continent). Lean teaches us to look at “value streams” that go across departments and to view operations from a…
Parkland Hospital Deploys Galvanon’s MediKiosk(TM) in the ER to Decrease Patient Wait Times It’s been discussed here before, how hospitals are just as susceptible as manufacturers are to the “Siren Song” of technology. This time, it appears Parkland Hospital (here…
U.S. hospitals try to pick up the ER pace You might have seen this sad case of a fatally broken ER on the news over the weekend and I have more comments on that later. On a more positive light,…
The Cincinnati Post – St. E’s plan for ER is unique Thanks to blog reader Karthik for sending this my way. I’ve read the article three times looking for something positive to say and am still struggling. The headline says…
I love books. I’d also love to have more time to read books, or finish books. People often ask me what I’m reading. Here’s what I’m trying to read or am wanting to read: “WIP” — started, but haven’t finished…
BBC – Radio 4 – In Business COMING MID 2008, A NEW BOOK ON LEAN HEALTHCARE – “Lean Hospitals: Improving Patient Safety, Quality, and Employee Satisfaction,” by Mark Graban Here is a nice program from the BBC, can listen in…
Business Week Article Here’s a good story about how some doctors offices are trying to reduce backlogs and appointment delays, by adopting lean and operations management methods. As the head of a large primary care department at a Kaiser Permanente…
Happy New Year! As 2006 ends, I hope many of you had a GREAT lean year. Please add your comments about your lean accomplishments for the year, or at least one key lean accomplishment. I was very fortunate to do…
