Employing lean six sigma strategies to improve operating room first case on-time starts: A case report

Q2 Nursing

Perioperative Care and Operating Room Management Pub Date : 2025-01-16 DOI:10.1016/j.pcorm.2025.100473

Christy V. Mitchell , Alex R. Anderson , Kenneth Romito , Wesley M. Abadie , Angela K. Phillips

{"title":"Employing lean six sigma strategies to improve operating room first case on-time starts: A case report","authors":"Christy V. Mitchell , Alex R. Anderson , Kenneth Romito , Wesley M. Abadie , Angela K. Phillips","doi":"10.1016/j.pcorm.2025.100473","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>The operating room is a key driver of hospital revenue, making the monitoring of performance metrics crucial for cost reduction. Perioperative leaders often struggle to pinpoint the causes of delays. This article describes how an ambulatory surgical center implemented Lean Six Sigma methodology to identify barriers and implement targeted interventions to improve first-case on-time starts.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A multidisciplinary committee employed the standard process improvement methodology known as define-measure-analyze-improve-control (DMAIC) to assess workflow, identify the root causes of delays, and implement five targeted interventions to improve workflow.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Data from 888 cases were examined over a 20-month period in the perioperative department, 180 cases before and 708 cases during and after implementation. First case on-time starts increased from 30 % to 79 % 12 months after the interventions were implemented. Additionally, delays in OR minutes decreased by approximately 49 % during this time frame.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>A multidisciplinary committee's use of Lean Six Sigma strategies, particularly the DMAIC framework, has effectively identified barriers to on-time first case starts in the OR. This approach established a solid foundation for developing targeted problem-solving interventions. By applying this methodology, the committee improved operational efficiency and reduced delays in the surgical workflow.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":53468,"journal":{"name":"Perioperative Care and Operating Room Management","volume":"38 ","pages":"Article 100473"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0000,"publicationDate":"2025-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Perioperative Care and Operating Room Management","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405603025000147","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"Nursing","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

The operating room is a key driver of hospital revenue, making the monitoring of performance metrics crucial for cost reduction. Perioperative leaders often struggle to pinpoint the causes of delays. This article describes how an ambulatory surgical center implemented Lean Six Sigma methodology to identify barriers and implement targeted interventions to improve first-case on-time starts.

Methods

A multidisciplinary committee employed the standard process improvement methodology known as define-measure-analyze-improve-control (DMAIC) to assess workflow, identify the root causes of delays, and implement five targeted interventions to improve workflow.

Results

Data from 888 cases were examined over a 20-month period in the perioperative department, 180 cases before and 708 cases during and after implementation. First case on-time starts increased from 30 % to 79 % 12 months after the interventions were implemented. Additionally, delays in OR minutes decreased by approximately 49 % during this time frame.

Conclusion

A multidisciplinary committee's use of Lean Six Sigma strategies, particularly the DMAIC framework, has effectively identified barriers to on-time first case starts in the OR. This approach established a solid foundation for developing targeted problem-solving interventions. By applying this methodology, the committee improved operational efficiency and reduced delays in the surgical workflow.

查看原文本刊更多论文

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Perioperative Care and Operating Room Management Nursing-Medical and Surgical Nursing

CiteScore

1.30

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

56 days

期刊介绍： The objective of this new online journal is to serve as a multidisciplinary, peer-reviewed source of information related to the administrative, economic, operational, safety, and quality aspects of the ambulatory and in-patient operating room and interventional procedural processes. The journal will provide high-quality information and research findings on operational and system-based approaches to ensure safe, coordinated, and high-value periprocedural care. With the current focus on value in health care it is essential that there is a venue for researchers to publish articles on quality improvement process initiatives, process flow modeling, information management, efficient design, cost improvement, use of novel technologies, and management.