An evaluation of Lean and Six Sigma methodologies in the national health service

Antony, Jiju, Lancastle, James, McDermott, Olivia, Bhat, Shreeranga, Parida, Ratri, & Cudney, Elizabeth A. (2021). An evaluation of Lean and Six Sigma methodologies in the national health service. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print). doi: 10.1108/IJQRM-05-2021-0140

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to conduct an empirical study derived from previous literature from the perspective of benefits, tools and techniques, Continuous Improvement (CI) and Quality Improvement (QI) methodologies, and Critical Failure Factors (CFFs) of Lean and Six Sigma (SS) in the National Health Services (NHS). A literature review was carried out to identify previous findings, empirical data and critical variables concerning LSS in Healthcare for over ten years. Secondly, primary research in quantitative surveys were carried out with 110 participants who have experience using Lean and SS in the NHS. There are 32 tools and techniques, 36 CFFs, 8 CI and QI methodologies and 18 individual benefits across five different improvement categories cited in this paper. Lean and SS have evolved into common practices within the NHS and now have an established list of 30 tools and techniques frequently employed by staff. Lean and SS are considered robust CI methodologies capable of effectively delivering extensive benefits across many different categories. The NHS must overcome a sizeable amount of highly important CFFs and divided organisational culture. This paper has developed the most extensive empirical study ever produced on LSS in the NHS and has expanded on previous works to create new and updated research. The findings produced in this paper will assist NHS medical directors and practitioners in obtaining an up-to-date insight into Lean and SS¿s status in the NHS. The paper will also guide the NHS to critically evaluate their current CI strategy to ensure long term sustainability and deliver improved levels of service to patients

Publisher

Emerald

Rights

CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IE

cbn

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Biomedical Engineering (Scholarly Articles)