The use of Six Sigma aims to improve business processes by eliminating the causes of errors that lead to deficiencies in products or services, essentially allowing an organization to achieve the objective of rationalizing its activity. processes so that they can provide the best products and services with a minimal number of defects (3.4 defects per million opportunities). At this stage, the organization is at a point where results are consistent, stable, and predictable. This is accomplished by implementing a management system that systematically identifies errors and then providing a range of methods to remove them. The methodology provided by Six Sigma is the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) approach, which is mainly used to improve existing processes in a company. Six Sigma can benefit a hospital by reducing wasted time, whether it is the flow of communicating results from the laboratory to the patient or the scheduling procedure. By minimizing wait time in both scenarios, a hospital will not only be able to provide better customer service, but it can also have a major impact on its financial performance.Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The ability to resolve issues related to service variation allows for better resource utilization, meaning more resources can be invested in other aspects of the hospital to improve customer experience and increase the chances of a customer returning in the future. The Six Sigma tools used in the book “Lean Six Sigma Case Studies in the Healthcare Enterprise” (Sandra L.Furterer, 2014) in the DMAIC cycle are respectively the initial VOC, detailed VOC, root cause analysis, map of the value chain and the PDCA. . Although the tools mentioned can be effective, there are several tools more applicable to the healthcare sector. First of all, the use of Voice of the Customer (VOC) is a tool suggested by the literature to define and measure project objectives, problems, improvement activities and customer requirements. This tool is a method of investigation from customers to organizational management, which can include interviews, focus groups, complaints and surveys. This provides information about customer expectations regarding the service provided by the organization. Although using VOC is useful for an organization to understand customer expectations in many industries, it is a tool that can potentially be ineffective in healthcare. The fact that clients (patients) of hospitals are normally under stress due to the nature of that stress. service sector itself, it may be considered inconsiderate and intrusive to bother them for feedback. This may result in a customer being careless in completing a survey, which may lead to inaccurate information regarding their services. Additionally, the VOC process can be financially costly. Considering the cost of implementing VOC as well as the potential inaccuracy of the information, this method is not ideal for a hospital to implement. When improving customer satisfaction in hospitals, it is essential to identify service features that meet the Quality Critique tool. The book “Solutions to the Healthcare Quality Crisis: Cases and Examples of Lean Six Sigma in Healthcare” (Søren Bisgaard, 2009) states that “customer expectations are considered and weighed". This is ideal in theory, as the research is based on brainstorming that does not involve input from a distressed patient. Additionally, if executed correctly, it provides accurate judgment on the most important factors for improving customer satisfaction. This introduces Kano's model of prioritizing customer needs, which, when used in tandem with brainstorming, makes for a very effective methodology. Regarding the measurement phase, the book “Six Sigma for Organizational Excellence: A Statistical Approach” (K. Muralidharan, 2015) recommends using the data collection plan such as check sheets. This data collection method is simple and focuses on real-time data collection. The ability to categorize issues, while using a simple count to record the number of issues, gives workers a visual overview of problem areas that need improvement. This is an effective tool for hospitals to measure the number of errors in real time, which can help reveal areas that tend to cause the most variance. The literature (Sandra L.Furterer, 2014) recommends the Root Cause tool for process analysis to determine root causes of variation or defect risks. This tool focuses on identifying the potential impact of the event. Additionally, this tool reveals the causes of errors after a problem has occurred, making this tool efficient to implement, helping to prevent similar future events. The tool should ideally be applied as soon as human error is detected. However, since the Kano model will be used in the definition phase, the Pareto chart method is the obvious tool to use as they complement each other extremely well. Using Pareto charts will help hospitals focus on the elements that have the most significant impact on the health service. Concerning improving process performance by addressing and eliminating the root causes identified during the analysis phase, the literature (Sandra L. Furterer, 2014) recommends using the Value Stream Mapping technique of Lean Six Sigma. The efficient flow of information and customers is crucial. not only to the functioning of a hospital but also contributes immensely to customer satisfaction. This method can be considered ideal for improving services within the healthcare sector. Finally, the control phase of the Six Sigma DMAIC process involves executing a control plan to maintain and track progress after the improvement phase. This is to ensure that the expected improvement in a project has occurred. The literature (Sandra L.Furterer, 2014) recommends PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act), while the literature of (Søren Bisgaard, 2009) suggests using statistical process control charts as a mode of maintaining progression within the hospital. A flaw that makes the PDCA methodology not ideal for implementation in hospitals is this ignorance of the “people” element. Because of the constant change required for PDCA to work, workers must constantly adapt, which can cause workers in a hospital to be confused about relatively simple procedures. The SPC method, however, can potentially incur a substantial cost to an organization due to the need for professionals to ensure the tool is used correctly. That said, continuous review of improvements is vital for hospitals, and the fact that SPC includes activities such as review frequency and checking system capacity makes it one of the best tools for the control. Qualityintellectual analysis. Although hospital staff are not typically considered customer service providers, they are actually very similar to traditional customer agents in how customers perceive them. Customers of a hospital can judge the “quality” of services based on factors such as customer support, care provided, treatment in minimum time, prompt responses and communication attitude. In addition to the services provided by hospital staff, hospitals must provide customer service in a range of contexts such as providing laboratory results and providing patient updates in a timely and caring manner, which which can also influence a patient's satisfaction with a hospital. Since most existing hospitals currently offer identical products and services, a focus on customer satisfaction is important for a hospital to differentiate itself from others. Continuing with the As mentioned above, customer satisfaction in hospitals depends on whether a customer feels that the value-added services provided outweigh non-value-added procedures, such as long waiting time before treatment, acceptability of hospital atmosphere, convenience of transportation and even ease of research. parking spaces. Reducing costs is the first step in improving a hospital's financial performance. Optimizing financial performance is critical for hospitals for reasons such as the continued weak economy and massive budget deficits. That said, the demand for hospital facilities remains high due to the continued technological advancements that hospitals are required to adopt. The most obvious ways to improve a hospital's financial performance are to reduce treatment error rates and allocate resources efficiently. To do this, Six Sigma can help the hospital identify and resolve issues related to healthcare delivery. Kano Model Analysis is a tool that can be applied in the hospital to improve overall quality, as it helps identify opportunities for differentiation of health services. Kano analysis involves classifying customer preferences into three main categories: basic attributes, performance attributes, excitement attributes. When hospitals compete with each other, due to all hospitals offering similar products and services, customer satisfaction becomes a key point of differentiation. With the help of Kano analysis, a hospital will not only be able to identify service attributes that lead to higher levels of patient satisfaction, but it will also be able to rank customers and thus offer patient-oriented approaches. Data Collection Plan - Check Sheets Although this data collection method is simple, it can be a very effective tool for measuring and tracking improvement efforts, due to the consistent nature of the method itself. This tool can help a hospital measure areas that need urgent improvement, by collecting real-time data over a period of time. Additionally, the simplicity of the tool means that implementing this methodology would not result in a significant financial burden for the hospital, but by resolving issues it could reduce procedural variability. Pareto charts can also be used to improve hospital processes. The Pareto principle states that in any group of factors contributing to a mutual effect,relatively few contributors account for most of the impact. A Pareto chart is a form of bar chart that displays the variety of factors contributing to an effect on an organization. corresponding to the magnitude of their impact. In a hospital setting, Pareto charts can be used to help identify vital factors that require the most attention. Using Pareto charts will help hospitals identify and focus on the elements that have the most significant impact on healthcare. Value stream mapping (VSM) is another tool that can help a hospital improve the quality of care, by allowing management to map and visualize the flow of information, materials (medications), and patients . The “value stream” describes all the steps necessary to complete a defined process, and VSM is often used to reveal waste, such as patient waiting times, to enable a more streamlined process with minimal of disturbances. Additionally, VSM can reveal methods to reduce drug costs and waste, reduce labor expenses, and ensure financial accountability. In the case of this hospital, VSM can be used to trace a patient's journey to treatment, including waiting time. This tool relies heavily on acquiring reliable data regarding the patient's treatment progress, including the time spent at each patient stage. Another Six Sigma tool that can be used in the healthcare industry is root cause analysis. Once an error event has occurred, the first step would be to define the action consequences, in retrospect. This is followed by identifying the action and tracking the causal factors, as well as determining the actual cause to subject the event to further investigation. The main reason for implementing the RCA approach is that it exposes the cause of errors by examining factors such as inadequate education or conditions; for example, not monitoring the patient. The use of statistical process control is also an analytical tool used to measure, monitor and control various procedures related to quality control. Its primary use is to ensure that an entire process operates as efficiently as possible within an organization. This is a vital technique because it focuses attention on detecting problems in advance, allowing workers to eliminate or minimize the effects. Comparison of the root cause analysis tool of correcting the problem after it has occurred. Kano Model The quality Kano model is classified into three main categories: basic attributes, performance attributes, arousal attributes. A core attribute is a minimum quality expected and can contribute to customer dissatisfaction when it is not met. An example of this within a hospital is the expectation that a physician has the medical knowledge and medical tools available. Performance attributes are qualities that are not absolutely necessary. However, if the qualities exist, this can lead to an increase in customer satisfaction. An example of this is the free Wi-Fi service in hospitals. When the core and performance attributes are met for customers, the hospital can examine the excitement attributes, which relate to the element of surprise that customers do not expect, normally perceived as an "unspoken accomplishment ". This can take the form of complementary products such as offering a healthy snack in the hospital. This is a way ofimplement an excitement attribute, which does not cost much financial burden to the hospital, and the fact that it is a healthy snack means that it is more likely to be enjoyed by the patients. Excitement attributes, when properly implemented in a hospital, can be a feature that provides a unique selling point and helps increase customer satisfaction, which in turn creates a sense of loyalty among customers. customers. For this reason, the hospital should use this methodology to improve customer services by creating additional value for customers. Pareto Chart In the case of a hospital, this method can be used to minimize the risk of medications or a patient's health report not being delivered on time. Contributing factors may be due to under-stocking of medications (out of stock), improperly processed and read order, crowded queue of patients waiting for medications, long transportation time of from one end of the hospital to the other and poor communication between departments. The first step would be to rank the causes according to their relative frequency, from greatest to least. In this case, the causes could be classified in descending order of frequency: crowded queue of patients waiting for medicines, understocking of medicines, long transport time from the hospital pharmacy to the patient, poor communication between departments, command not processed and read correctly. The Pareto principle can then provide guidance, for example, 90% of delays come from overcrowded patient queues. With this knowledge, the hospital will have a clear understanding of which causes need to be treated urgently. Through the use of Pareto charts as well as cause and effect analysis (fishbone diagram) or brainstorming, a hospital will be able to reduce the risks of unnecessarily long waiting times for patients. patients by allocating resources to improve queue congestion. Additionally, this tool, when used correctly, can have an extremely positive impact on customer satisfaction. For example, the nursing team will be able to place more emphasis on services that have the most impact. This means that customers will be more likely to use the hospital in the future, which builds customer loyalty, which has a direct influence on the financial performance of the hospital. Value Stream Mapping A generic patient treatment journey is shown below: Doctor > Hospital > Registration > Treatment Approximate waiting time between transfers: 30 minutes During the entire process, the waiting time a patient can be broken down into value-added and non-value-added time. . The goal of this tool is to minimize or even eliminate existing non-value-added time, which is considered time for which the patient is not willing to pay. This could be anything that adds no value to the patient, such as a half-hour wait for an appointment. That said, while continuous flow is an ultimate goal, it is rarely possible. Instead, waiting times could be minimized by analyzing the VSM to identify areas that need improvement, for example when a patient has to wait a long time before a bed becomes available at the hospital. This is a very common problem in hospitals, and it can potentially be reduced by matching the supply and demand of treatment beds. The length of waiting time for patients requiring treatment beds is a “waste” revealed in the VSM, and one solution to minimize it is to implement a “waste” system...