Define and Eliminate Errors

Errors and variability undermine the delivery of effective, safe patient care. Six Sigma is well suited to address disparities while helping to foster a stronger healthcare system by reducing variations and defects within the process.

Promote Quality

Over the years, the healthcare industry has used many methods to attempt to increase quality and reduce costs across the board, such as reengineering, TQM, PDSA, CQI, SPC, and PICOs, but they all had some kind of gaps, with improvements being mostly unsustainable. Lower cost and higher quality don’t always gel with objectives. Often, raising the level of quality eliminates the need for rework, which leads to higher readmission rates.

Six Sigma can produce better results than other approaches because it’s a robust, highly- disciplined strategy that’s based on statistical techniques and tools meant to identify and eliminate defects.

Six Sigma vs. Standard Quality Initiatives

There are many differences between Six Sigma and standard quality initiatives. 

For example, with Six Sigma, projects are carefully selected to focus on customer requirements, while in standard quality initiatives, projects are driven by the quality department and aren’t necessarily aligned with organizational objectives. 

Six Sigma targets variation within processes, while standard quality initiatives look primarily at averages. 

Six Sigma is a phased, highly structured methodology that’s built around statistical analysis and rigorous metrics. Projects do not proceed from one phase to the other until all of the criteria are met and the data has been validated.

However, with standard quality initiatives, some familiar statistical tools applied with far less rigor or structure.

And while Six Sigma incorporates strong dashboard tools to maintain long-term improvement, standard quality initiatives generally don’t have built-in mechanisms for assuring changes won’t come undone over time.

With a Six Sigma approach, you can: 

• Reduce time-consuming rework within clinical diagnosis approvals between the insurance company and healthcare provider
• Fill prescriptions right the first time
• Improve nurse scheduling
• Streamline the process for patient reimbursement claims
• Improve hospital communications and supply chain procedures for supplies and equipment
• Slash how long takes to process and visit with a patient, of particular concern in the ER
• Improve OR procedures and scheduling
• Manage the flow of information inter-departmentally
• Optimize performance of all critical departments and service lines
• Boost hospital and clinical maintenance

Making Changes in Human Behavior

Doctors tend to be very receptive to the concept of Six Sigma because it’s an evidence-based and scientific way to solve problems. When considering a transformation of the health care system as we know, it’s not just about tweaking data points on some impersonal chart; rather, it’s about changing human behavior. 

Success will require supporting the statistical methodology with facilitation techniques and change management. If you don’t address the acceptance part of the equation, hospitals and other healthcare systems will have a tough time making the change. 

Six Sigma and related change management techniques have proven extremely effective over the years. Whether this approach is used to enhance existing processes or to craft whole new processes, structures, services, and systems, the methodologies contained in Six Sigma and 5s add value for healthcare providers of all sizes.