I received this announcement recently. This sounds like an interesting and useful venture.
The ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value and the Ohio State University Fisher College of Business are excited to announce the creation of the Center for Lean Healthcare Research. This new center will be housed at Fisher and will build the body of research on the emerging trend of process improvement in healthcare.
A press release elaborated:
As health care organizations continue to seek ways to improve patient care quality and reduce costs, the ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value and The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business are partnering to build the body of research on the emerging trend of process improvement in healthcare. The organizations have announced the creation of the Center for Lean Healthcare Research, to be housed at Fisher. This collaboration will focus on studying and documenting how the Lean methodology is producing lasting change in hospitals around the nation. Sharon Schweikhart, associate professor and director of the Master’s in Health Administration program at Ohio State, has been appointed director of the center.
The ultimate goal of the Center for Lean Healthcare Research is to create a peer- reviewed body of research that elevates the profile of these Lean health care practices and better equips hospitals and other organizations to deploy them.
The ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value and the Ohio State University Fisher College of Business are excited to announce the creation of the Center for Lean Healthcare Research. This new center will be housed at Fisher and will build the body of research on the emerging trend of process improvement in healthcare.
A press release elaborated:
As health care organizations continue to seek ways to improve patient care quality and reduce costs, the ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value and The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business are partnering to build the body of research on the emerging trend of process improvement in healthcare. The organizations have announced the creation of the Center for Lean Healthcare Research, to be housed at Fisher. This collaboration will focus on studying and documenting how the Lean methodology is producing lasting change in hospitals around the nation. Sharon Schweikhart, associate professor and director of the Master’s in Health Administration program at Ohio State, has been appointed director of the center.
The ultimate goal of the Center for Lean Healthcare Research is to create a peer- reviewed body of research that elevates the profile of these Lean health care practices and better equips hospitals and other organizations to deploy them.
I am no expert on Lean (meaning I have not read the literature), but I hope this new center conducts unbiased research on the safety, effectiveness and value of Lean as implemented in the typical hospital, not as a theoretical ideal. The press release worries me a bit as it sounds more promotional than academic.
ReplyDeleteFrom personal experience, I believe that Lean is used as a popular buzzword but rarely implemented properly, at least in the run of the mill community hospital - therefore leading to distorted opinions as to its effectiveness. One cannot research Lean without considering the real world.
nonlocal MD