World is changing. From industrial manufacturing to the top notch healthcare service providers, everyone is striving to satisfy its end customers needs in a best possible manner. According to the recent survey,in USA, petition has been filed to deploy the LEAN principles following the Strong Big data analysis in all government & public sectors for better decision making. Thus, it is wise to say that, with a next revolution of IOT, every single sector must embrace a change keeping in view the customer enlightenment in order to survive, upcoming, throat-cutting era.
Amidst of overall scenario, efforts are being worldwide to increase the quality standards being practiced in a healthcare sector. Focus is being made to delight the customer rater than achieving a mere satisfaction. Following the principle of LEAN Six Sigma, many institution & organizations have saved a fortune in subjected aspect. Let us have a look at some statistics , in the light of which practicing operation excellence in this sector would be mandatory.
- In a study released study by Health Grades;
An average of 195,000 people in the USA died due to potentially preventable, in-hospital medical errors in each of the years 2000-2002, according to a study of 37 million patient records.”
- Harvard University study for the state of New York
Extrapolated to the national population, suggested that 1.3 million people are injured each year in hospitals .118,000 will die from those injuries .Report suggested that 25% injuries were actually preventable”
Likewise, on the other hand, many organizations have embraced a fortune by executing the principles of Lean Six Sigma to teh basic ground levels in their overall objectives.
- Yale-New Haven Medical Center in Connecticut achieved a 75 percent reduction in bloodstream infection rates in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit, with $1.2 million annually in estimated savings.
- One project at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Centers cath lab increased available capacity by 2.08 patients per lab per weekday, with a potential revenue impact of $5.2 million annually.
- The Women and Infants Hospital of Rhode Island successfully used Six Sigma and change management to standardize operating procedures for embryo transfer, yielding a 35 percent increase in implantation rates.
Pakistan Healthcare
Pakistan, being a underdeveloped country, can embrace a change in teems of health infrastructure by practicing the craft of operation excellence. Starting from the bottom line, fortune can be saved while enhancing the customer experience with the execution of these prevailing techniques in a real time scenario.
To have a macroscopic overview of Pakistan’s healthcare system, let us throw a light over 5 baisc metrics;
- Infant Mortality
- Life Expectancy
- Maternal Mortality Rate
- Dynamic Healthcare indicator
- Hygienic Condition
It is clear from the graphs above, that, need of the time is to mend over attentions in raising the overall standards of quality in terms of healthcare/hospitals system.
How To Get Started with LSS in Hospitals (Healthcare)
To get started with an excellence in the subjected notion, LSS can lay a significant part in aligning any healthcare or hospital policy as per the market & customer demand. Enriched value stream floating towards the end consumer can surely make a difference. 4 basic branches where we can start taking measure w.r.t. hospital strategical objectives are;
From getting pat9ient on the discharge list to the waiting time to see a doctor, excellence measures can help us solidifying the quality cultures in any arena. Examples of the above mentioned branches can be drilled down to simple projects, such as;
Above are some of the project examples which can be executed in basic hospital management system. There are many NGO’s & healthcare departments are working in Pakistan, right now. What we need to do is to map out the strategy for achieving the pinnacle point of customer satisfaction in the light of available resources.
Conclusion
In the light of overall debate, above, it is clear that vacuum for improvement is present in our health stature. In my recent meeting with a managerial board of top service providing hospital, they endorsed the concept of getting started with LSS from an emergency room to a medicine storage area. At the end, it can be said;
“In GOD we trust, All others bring DATA”
P.S: Embrace strong data analytical measures for better decision making in professional & business hub.