L๐ชโ๐ฆโ๐ณโ ๐ฎโ๐ณโ ๐ญโ๐ชโ๐ฆโ๐ฑโ๐นโ๐ญโ๐จโ๐ฆโ๐ทโ๐ชโ ๐ตโ๐ฆโ๐ทโ๐นโ 2๏ธโฃ ๐ดโ๐ซโ 3๏ธโฃ
Lean and Six Sigma are often confused, but they are often used side by side in healthcare and other industries to create improvements. Six Sigma is a metrics-driven system used to reduce medical errors and remove defects from processes involved in delivering care. Both methodologies strive to optimize operations and increase value for patients. #sixsigma Sigma and #lean focus on reducing defects and eliminating waste, respectively. #leansixsigma is a hybrid improvement process that combines the two systems of the last two decades.
๐๐จ ๐ฆ๐๐ค๐ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ซ, ๐๐๐๐ง ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ค ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐จ๐ซ “๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐๐ก ๐ซ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ซ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ”. In Lean, employees work at their regular ๐๐ซ๐ ๐จ๐ง๐จ๐ฆ๐ข๐ and ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐ฅ speeds. Time savings come from finding and eliminating idle states.
In Lean, waste is commonly defined as any action that does not add value to the customer. Essentially, waste is any ๐๐ ฝ๐ ฝ๐ ด๐ ฒ๐ ด๐๐๐ ฐ๐๐ step in a process that does not benefit the customer, therefore, the customer does not want to pay for it. Lean is centered around eliminating waste from a process. When wastes are removed, only the steps required to deliver a satisfactory, now high-valued, product to the customer are left.
In an average process, the customer value adding activities are around ๐% of all activities performed by an organization (Reference: Going lean, Hines & Taylor, 2000). Traditional leadership and management target this small ‘piece of the pie’ and wants to improve it. Lean teaches us to ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ฒ in the 91% section, in which business non value adding activities and non value adding activities occur.
Organizations that establish lean principles in health care argue that #lean is the better approach to improve healthcare, because it values all members of the patient care team and can be implemented by ๐ ฐ๐ ฝ๐๐ พ๐ ฝ๐ ด. Unlike Six Sigma, Lean does not require advanced statistical methods, costly training, or expensive platforms and systems. More importantly, Lean values can be applied gradually on a continuous path to value-based health care. Each episode of care and every interaction with the patient represent ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ to cultivate #value and reduce #waste .
In the last post of this series, I will elaborate more on how Lean concepts are implemented in the health care sector.
Peggy is a Lean Six Sigma master black belt at heart, a peopleโs people and bridge builder. Iโve worked at large multinationals in service and production industry. I am creative,analytic with a touch of geek. I have two lovely princesses, a wonderful husband and we live in sunny Curaรงao
