Transforming Health Care, Virginia Mason

as well as consumers who have become concerned and confused about what the future holds.  Transforming Health Care is the kind of story that gives us the necessary image of what a transformed quality patient experience can be.  Although US News and World Report publishes ranking for best US hospitals overall, as well as those ranked by specialties (see http://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/area/wa/virginia-mason-medical-center-6910780) to look below the data, we need see the key performance changers. US News quotes patient satisfaction high in six specialty areas, and 77% of patients report that they would recommend the institution to their family.

At Virginia Mason, the basics of lean methods, such as value stream mapping, were key to understanding the chaotic and sometimes painful patient experience pre-transformation.  How cancer patients, for instance, were “moved” through various floors and departments was off-putting.  Imagine an emotionally hurt patient having to work his way through noisy and frightening areas, and then imagine what happens when a new cancer treatment center is constructed based on patient, not simply physician-centered layouts, were used.

But the deliberate and very smart approach this institution took to changing management styles to fit a new patient-centered model is stunningly different from top-down hierarchies that satisfy themselves first, patients and possibly workers second and third.  And although the tools from lean manufacturing appear here and there, healthcare is not manufacturing, and don't expect to find exact parallels between a healthcare customer and a hardware or auto or even retail customer.   Look at Flow Stations, for example.  One pioneering physician, Dr. Lammert described the change this way:  “You can build flow stations all you want but if people aren’t mentally ready it won’t work.  You have to think about your work differently.”

This little gem of a book is a great starting place for healthcare providers and execs wanting to do something, but not the wrong something.  Virginia Mason of Seattle may not be ranked up with # 1 Johns Hopkins, but as a pioneer and innovator, the institution offers in-depth, detailed look at the “before and after” and a great starting point.  Plus, understanding what to expect, in advance of moving and changing people and processes has great value.

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