5s for Healthcare. Why 5s for Healthcare?

That’s the question that Ade Asefeso answers in his new book “5s for Healthcare”

Ade said “Healthcare costs are increasing more rapidly than costs for other products and services. Healthcare providers, particularly hospitals, are under significant pressure to reduce costs while at the same time improving service and patient safety, reducing patient waiting times, and minimizing errors and associated litigation. However, most hospitals are not making the necessary improvements in cost, quality, and safety. 20 percent of consecutive inpatient stays were associated with poor quality care, unnecessary fragmentation of care, or both”.

Ade continued by saying; “5s is an integral part of the Lean Healthcare process which promotes "A Place for Everything and Everything is in its Place". When 5s is performed as the first step of a Lean Healthcare effort, processes become more visible and identified “waste” is cleaned out. While change is often perceived with a sense of apprehension, participants in the 5s program begin to taste change as something that can be positive and even fun, paving the way for a true Lean Healthcare transformation. 5s clearly communicates that management is willing to allow the employees to be involved in the process of change. The goal of 5s is to have a workstation and office area that is Joint Commission ready at all times. 5s creates a neat, clean and orderly environment that will become a source of lasting pride for all employees”.

Visit http://www.booksonline.aaglobalsourcing.com/5s-for-health... for details.

Ade also mentioned that “As you begin to put together your 5s Lean plan, remember, 5s is not a project. It is a mindset that should be carried out with designed purpose and in a manner that includes every able individual. It is small changes, not just big ones that will help your facility, clinic, or clinical lab become a more functional, clean, and satisfying place for both personnel and patients”.

Ade pointed out that “Healthcare organizations, historically, have not been designed to make service processes or a “value stream” of care flow. Healthcare services often use a “batch and queue” process, with patients spending the bulk of their time waiting until a health care professional is ready (i.e., push versus pull with regard to service delivery)”.

Ade continued by saying “Patient cycle time (the total time from the beginning to the end of a process) in our hospitals, laboratories, and therapy settings is becoming a key measurement that needs to improve”.

Ade said “All types of organizations are leveraging Lean principles and tools. Many organizations are trying to function effectively in the face of growing challenges such as a high costs, declining market share, and limited capacity. In all of these cases, Lean can have an immediate, positive impact on business”.

Ade reminded us that “Healthcare organizations are made up of a series of processes with diverse services or lines of business. Therefore, you need to build delivery systems with these lines of business in mind. Using Lean Thinking, your organization can achieve a number of benefits, which may include improved quality, increased operational flexibility, reduced cycle time within processes, more efficient use of space, consistent service delivery, reduced lead times, and reduced operating costs”.

Ade advised that “There will be naysayers that may argue that their messiness is beneficial to them; some do point to the fact that time spent keeping their environment organized distracts from the important things in their jobs like time analyzing or thinking and defining new approaches to care”.

Ade went on by saying “However, they miss the point; truly organized people are not organized just for the sake of order. Instead, their organization is a result of having a process to manage all of the things in their lives. These folks avoid the repeated distraction paper or e-mails in their inbox by having a clear approach for handling all of the responsibilities in their lives. By managing things effectively, they avoid clutter and chaos”.

Visit http://www.booksonline.aaglobalsourcing.com/books for details

Ade spent a lot of his time representing various companies either at supply chain level, operational level, sales and marketing level, and senior executive level across Asia, North America, Africa, Eastern and Western Europe.

Ade is currently the CEO of AA Global Sourcing Ltd. A company that helps local businesses outsource so that they can enjoy the benefits that used to be enjoyed by big corporations for years.

All this still doesn’t make mention of Ade’s increasingly successful career as an author, of numerous books on Finance, Business Ideas, Personal Development, Self help, Outsourcing, Lean manufacturing, Lean Office, Lean Sales and Marketing, Lean Healthcare, Real estate and Online Marketing.

Visit http://www.aaglobalsourcing.com for details.