While improvement methods have delivered higher efficiency and better quality products, the question of applicability in healthcare is still clouded by uncertainty. Traditionally, there have been opposing views: on the one hand promoting large-scale industrial-type improvement to bring healthcare into the modern era and, on the other, arguing that people are not motor cars and that simplistic a...

INTRODUCTION Despite a widespread public health system, the private healthcare sector is the major provider of health care in rural India. This study describes the profile and medical practices of private rural health providers (PRHPs) in rural Haryana, India. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted among PRHPs practicing in the villages of Comprehensive Rural Health Services Project (C...

Healthcare institutions are service-oriented establishments that provide medical care facilities comprising of observational, diagnostic, research, therapeutic and rehabilitative services and serves a vital role in helping to improve the well being of all members of society. Health care facilities encompass a wide range of types, from small and relatively simple medical clinics to large complex...

BACKGROUND Rising health care costs and emphasis on value have placed the onus of reducing healthcare costs on the surgeon. METHODS Financial data from 3,973 hip, knee, and shoulder arthroplasties performed at a physician owned orthopedic hospital was retrospectively reviewed over a two-year period. A wasted implant financial report was posted starting the second year of the study. Each surge...

Many healthcare organizations are building or renovating patient care facilities. Using Lean Six Sigma methods, nurse leaders can eliminate unnecessary waste and improve work and patient care environments. Starting with a key department like the post-anesthesia care unit is a good way to expose staff and leaders to the potential of Lean.

Healthcare institutions continue to face challenges in providing safe patient care in increasingly complex organisational and regulatory environments while striving to maintain financial viability. The clinical microsystem provides a conceptual and practical framework for approaching organisational learning and delivery of care. Tensions exist between the conceptual theory and the daily practic...

391 The ecological footprint of healthcare is enormous.[1] Almost 10% of the United States’ greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are contributed by healthcare.[2,3] More than a third of all hospital waste are generated during the perioperative period and surgical care. Inhaled anesthetics account for 2.5% of the GHG emissions attributed to the National Health Service of the United Kingdom.[1] In 2014...

BACKGROUND This paper presents the findings of a 13-month lean implementation in National Health Service (NHS) primary care health visiting services from May 2008 to June 2009. METHOD Lean was chosen for this study because of its reported success in other healthcare organisations. Value-stream mapping was utilised to map out essential tasks for the participating health visiting service. Stake...