Quality Improvement of Healthcare Through Lean Six-Sigma: A Case of Yekatit 12 Hospital
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Date
2019-10
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Health care organizations are now facing different challenges that brought them to a decision to
obtain efficiency improvement, quality and cost reduction. The growth in health sectors access and
delivery in Ethiopia has been improved markedly in the last decade. Despite the improvement
made in expanding access to health sectors, the disease burden is still high and the service
utilization rate remains low. According to the study made by WHO patient satisfaction rate is 50%
and average length of stay is 6-7 days and patients are forced to spend a prolonged waiting time in
different service stations to get served. Uneven distribution of facilities, shortage of workforce and
complicated path flows are among the causes of this prolonged waiting time in public hospitals.
This research aims in experimenting the possibilities of process improvement opportunities in
YEKATIT 12 hospital by utilizing lean six sigma methodology. In doing so qualitative and
quantitative data collection tools and analysis tools have been used. A literature has been reviewed
and hospital documents are referred as a secondary source of data. Based on the literatures Yekatit
12 hospital is selected as a case hospital and based on the preliminary data assessment laboratory
service station is selected as a case area. Primary source data has been collected from patients,
laboratory technologists and management personnel’s.
Data has been analyzed by using the DMAIC framework of LSS. The DMAIC clearly shows the
existing system and the bottlenecks are clearly defined. In addition to DMAIC arena simulation
software have been used for analysis. Then a new process is developed by value stream mapping
and it is simulated by arena simulation software. The results after improvement show that Cycle
time of processes are reduced which directly reduces the prolonged waiting time within the
laboratory department. Therefore, it is safe to conclude that Lean Six Sigma can indeed be applied
for process improvement in Hospitals.
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Keywords
LSS, DMAIC, value stream mapping, process improvement