Healthcare Kaizen
From a Society for Health Systems webinar.
Blog: Visual Idea Boards & Other Kaizen Boards
Katie Anderson shared this in her blog post. Click to learn more about how Toyota Memorial Hospital uses an electronic Kaizen system. It’s not just about technology — you also need a methodology and the right leadership behaviors every day.
Electronic Kaizen at Toyota Memorial Hospital
Improvement Card Example
Shared with permission from St. Antonius Hospital in The Netherlands.
Card from St. Antonius (The Netherlands)
I like this example of a modified Kaizen card. It’s different than the template in our book, but it’s one I would endorse. Most importantly, it starts with a problem statement and not just an idea.
Seen displayed at the Society for Health Systems conference.
A Hospital Kaizen Card
This is the idea board from the emergency department at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. They first started their Kaizen program under the coaching of Mark Graban in September 2012.
They like to keep things fun and fresh, giving the board new themes to keep people engaged. This movie-themed board follows terms from the movie industry:
- Pitches (new ideas)
- Casting (to do)
- Shooting (in progress)
- Print Dailies (done)
- Released (documented in Kaizen Reports)
Movie-Themed Idea Board
Here is the first board that’s in place at Holzer Health, in Ohio. This is how the board looked in their first week of use in the Emergency Department.
Visual Idea Board from Holzer Health
A growing number of healthcare organizations are using the KaiNexus collaborative improvement platform to “make improvement happen” in their organizations.
Electronic boards have the advantages of providing visibility across departments and across sites within your organization.
Disclaimer: Mark Graban, co-author of Healthcare Kaizen, is on the management team at KaiNexus.
KaiNexus – Electronic Visibility
Shared by Ted Makros from NFI Industries.
“This is our “Kaizen Wall of Fame” we have going here and in just 2 months, I already have 70 “simple Kaizen” ideas and we are implementing almost daily.
“Wall of Fame” from a 3PL & Distribution Company
This example appears in Healthcare Kaizen, from a hospital lab. What’s labeled as “Kaizen Events” really refers to small Kaizen improvements, not the formal weeklong team events that are also used in healthcare.
“Kaizen Wall of Fame” from a Hospital
The Books:
@MarkGraban
“Nearly 2,000 Moderna vaccine doses were wasted at the Jamaica Plain VA Medical Center after a freezer plug was knocked loose by a contractor who accidentally removed it while cleaning." And the alarm failed. 2nd story I've heard of alarm failure - test!bostonherald.com/2021/01/22/1…
