Management And Accounting Web

Cohen, F. 2011. Improving processes in your practice: Do the same thing with less, or more with the same thing with lean six sigma and lean principles in your toolbox. Medical Economics (June): 60-62,-67-69.

Summary by James R. Martin, Ph.D., CMA
Professor Emeritus, University of South Florida

Healthcare Cost and Management Main Page

Cohen discusses five tools related to Six Sigma and Lean Principles that can be applied to a medical practice:

Flow charting or process mapping (create a chart of the steps in a process),

Value stream mapping (add data and other information to the process map such as the number of people and time required for each step, and possible problems),

Causal analysis (search for root causes of problems),

Voice of the customer (create a matrix related to customer expectations vs. actual results), and

Critical to quality (CTQ) trees (identify process improvement projects related to customer needs.

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