Studies have shown happy employees are 20% more productive at work..
Happy employees are more engaged, less prone to error and numerous studies have shown that happy employees correlate with happy customers. In your case, those are patients.
A particular study that we will be summarizing, proved just how much a hospital's lean process influences employee and patient satisfaction, and how a hospital having lean supply chain management benefits the hospital as a whole.Let's take a look.
What Researchers Wanted to Know
Researchers identified the presence of major growth opportunities within the typical hospital supply chain. They found significant waste and redundancy in the inventory management and logistics processes. This led to increased costs and lost revenues for hospitals.
Rather than make assumptions, they wanted to see how implementing hospital-wide lean supply chain methods would impact the facility,
How Researchers Conducted Their Study shareholders, employees, patients and everyone involved. Would there be significant, measurable benefits to over-hauling how a hospital manages its supply chain?
They took their study out of the lab and into the real world, the only place that scientists can really prove that a system works. Recruiting a hospital called Hospital Virgen Macarena in Seville, Spain, they began a 5-year study.
The researchers worked with management to incrementally and strategically implement comprehensive lean principles throughout every department in the hospital. They worked with the administration to build a unified, efficient, streamlined, lean process.
What They Found
The results of this study aren't surprising to those of us you appreciate the benefits of a lean process. During this study, they were able to:
- Significantly reduce the amount of excess inventory. This led to fewer carrying costs. It eliminated most losses due to expiration or obsoletism.
- Decrease lead time. With more efficient systems in place and improved vendor relationships, they always knew what was in inventory and what was running low. It stopped redundant ordering and ordering too much or too soon.
- Cut costs. The lean process cut major areas of waste out of the system, saving the hospital money.
- Improve patient care. Having exactly what they needed when they needed it improved the service patients received and likely contributed to improved outcomes.
But they found something else of note. Through before and after anonymous surveys, they found that employees within the hospital were generally happier after the lean system was implemented. Their productivity had increased. And the satisfaction of employees further increased patient satisfaction.
The Implications of This Study on Your Hospital
This is just one hospital and one small study. But the results are not isolated or unexpected.
Any hospital that applies lean principles will get similar results. Lean supply chain management cuts waste while ensuring that healthcare professionals and staff always have what they need to provide the highest level of care to patients.
A lean process will cut costs while increasing revenue potential.
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