The pursuit of excellence in healthcare must be a tireless effort. Six Sigma has proven to be the methodology of choice among leading healthcare systems. What is it about a Six Sigma strategy that makes it so ideally suited for the pursuit of excellence? How is it done to get rapid return on investment? What are the benefits? Brief answers are provided below. For more specifics, please Contact Us.

WHAT

Simply stated, the goal of Six Sigma is to deliver defect-free results. An organization rated at Six Sigma performs virtually defect-free work. For healthcare organizations, this translates to dramatically improved: patient and staff safety, provider efforts, facility utilization, revenue cycle management, and, of course, customer satisfaction. Why the Greek letter Sigma? Is this a fraternal order? Not exactly. When developed by Motorola in the late 1980s, it was observed that defects are strongly related to the variation in a process. The Greek letter Sigma is the common notation of standard deviation, a measure of variation. When the standard deviation of a process is reduced so that its average outcome is six standard deviations from the worst permissible performance, then it is deemed to be a Six Sigma process. An organization that can boast virtually defect-free processes is in a select fraternal order.

HOW

Proper deployment as a business strategy sets Six Sigma apart from other quality initiatives. The concept of Peak Quality Services' Rapid Deployment Template is illustrated in the organizational flow chart below. Key activities include:

• Six Sigma Education and Alignment of Leadership
• Identification of Strategic Imperatives
• Selection and Training of the Six Sigma Leadership Team
• Creation of a Deployment Plan
• Project Identification and Prioritization
• Selection and Training of Champions
• Selection and Training of Green and Black Belts
• Assignment of Projects to Green and Black Belts
• Coaching of Project Leaders and Project Completion
• Familiarization Training for Hospital Staff
• CME Training for Physician Staff

BENEFITS

The detailed implementation and documented success of the Rapid Deployment Template sets Peak Quality Services apart from other providers of Six Sigma services. Our clients witness a dramatic return on investment and which, in turn, fosters a healthy cultural change within the organization.

Project work by Green and Black Belt led teams is the flywheel of improvement. The ultimate benefits are improvements in quality of care, internal and external customer satisfaction, and financial growth.

For example, a Black Belt agreed to lead a project to reduce patient falls at a skilled care facility within a healthcare system. Patient falls affect the patients, their family members, the providers, and, ultimately, hospital finances. Estimated annual costs attributed to patient falls at one healthcare system were roughly $350,000. They set a goal of a 75% reduction in falls. In just three months they achieved and sustained a 25% reduction in falls, thus benefiting all involved.

Below are some examples of projects in support of certain strategic initiatives:

Quality of Care

• Patient Falls
• Drug Administration
• Lab Cycle Time

Improved Services

• Outpatient Registration
• "Door-to-Doc" Time
• CT Scan Cycle Time

Employee Growth & Satisfaction

• Schedules & Overtime
• Back Injuries
• Standardization of Policies

Revenue Cycle Management

• Length of Stay
• Managed Care Denials
• Cataract Surgery Profitability

Market Growth & Recognition

• Redesign & Construction of a New ED
• New Pharmacy
• CABG Top 100 Goal