Material Detail

This paper describes how lean concepts were applied to the healthcare system.Waiting is an activity that few find rewarding or of value; its simply a waste of time that reduces anyone's level of satisfaction. Yet, somehow, healthcare and waiting often are synonymous. The Clearview Cancer Institute in Huntsville, AL, is a dramatic exception.Physicians and staff have tirelessly reengineered the institutes processes and patient flow to eliminate as much waiting and waste as possible. They have implemented a range of healthcare process innovations that make the new facility atypical, and, in doing so,improved their ability and capacity to serve cancer patients and, most important, they improved the patient experience.

Disciplines:

• Health Sciences