Healthcare Engineering: A Lean Management Approach
Author
Source
Journal of Healthcare Engineering
Issue
Vol. 2020, Issue 2020 (31 Dec. 2020), pp.1-17, 17 p.
Publisher
Hindawi Publishing Corporation
Publication Date
2020-10-05
Country of Publication
Egypt
No. of Pages
17
Main Subjects
Abstract EN
This work tries to answer the following question: can healthcare be engineered using lean management tools? Lean is known to achieve successful results when implemented in the manufacturing sector.
Typical results are operational cost reduction, cycle time reduction, and higher customer satisfaction.
The service sector, however, has seen mixed results.
For the last two decades, educators and healthcare professionals are trying to implement lean tools in healthcare.
Some reported success and many did not, for variety of reasons.
In this paper, we search the literature and reveal the special nature of healthcare services, success factors, and barriers facing implementation of lean in healthcare.
We then conduct a survey of 18 elite Jordanian hospitals to study the case holistically.
Statistical analysis of the survey results confirmed some of what the literature revealed; organizational leadership seems to be the most dominant factor, followed by knowledge of employees about lean, training, and patient satisfaction (customer focus).
Another important finding, not captured by the literature, is that lean implementation success depends on educating physicians about continuous improvement and lean and ensuring they are part of the improvement team.
Based on the revealed enablers and obstacles, we created a full lean implementation framework.
This framework was then used along with selected engineering tools to implement lean in a major hospital successfully.
Implementation results showed 60% of reduction in cycle time, 80% reduction in operational cost, and many other benefits.
American Psychological Association (APA)
Abdallah, Abdallah A.. 2020. Healthcare Engineering: A Lean Management Approach. Journal of Healthcare Engineering،Vol. 2020, no. 2020, pp.1-17.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-1186591
Modern Language Association (MLA)
Abdallah, Abdallah A.. Healthcare Engineering: A Lean Management Approach. Journal of Healthcare Engineering No. 2020 (2020), pp.1-17.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-1186591
American Medical Association (AMA)
Abdallah, Abdallah A.. Healthcare Engineering: A Lean Management Approach. Journal of Healthcare Engineering. 2020. Vol. 2020, no. 2020, pp.1-17.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-1186591
Data Type
Journal Articles
Language
English
Notes
Includes bibliographical references
Record ID
BIM-1186591