Continuous improvement efforts in healthcare: a case study exploring the motivation, involvement and support necessary for success
by Jami Kovach, Luis De la Torre, David Walker
International Journal of Six Sigma and Competitive Advantage (IJSSCA), Vol. 4, No. 3, 2008

Abstract: In production environments, improvement efforts focus on reducing defects and/or improving efficiency. Yet, in service industries, customer satisfaction is often the primary concern; therefore, improvement efforts generally focus on reducing errors or mistakes. One specific type of service environment is a healthcare facility. Because the health and safety of human beings is the primary consideration in the healthcare industry, error reduction is paramount in this field. Healthcare facilities are, however, businesses, so in addition to concerns relative to the quality of patient care and patient safety, they are also interested in reducing operating expenses and improving the efficiency of their operations. In this work, we use a focus group composed of experts within the healthcare field to explore the current issues in healthcare and investigate how the represented healthcare facilities use continuous improvement initiatives such as Lean principles and the Six Sigma methodology to address these issues.

Online publication date: Fri, 05-Dec-2008

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