Quality Improvement In Nursing Care: A Case Study

I found your post about the lean methodology intriguing and informative. It helped me to have a better understanding of a clinic use for this type of approach to quality improvement in nursing care. Working for the state government means that budgets are tight and there is no room to be wasteful with resources. Richardson et al. (2014) identify certain principles of the Lean process that can be transposed into the healthcare setting. The principles of waste elimination, consistent workflow, staff involvement in process issue identification and customer-defined value could prove useful in the public health care setting. Richardson et al. (2014) used the Lean process in relation to emergency room nurses searching for supplies outside of the patient room, but this is could easily be used in other settings. In the situation you presented, if the nurse was more centrally located to all their assigned patients it would reduce time away from the patients and increase productivity. In our clinic rooms, each nurse is responsible for stocking their own room, but we frequently have nurses float throughout the region to provide coverage. Richardson et al. (2014) in conclusion of their study, showed a significant decrease in time nurses spent outside of the patient room with a standardized stocking system. The use of a similar stocking system would be beneficial for those nurses traveling to different sites to easily identify the location of supplies in each room which in turn increases the nurses work flow process knowing already the location of the supplies needed for the day.
(2014) Using lean methodology to decrease wasted RN time in seeking supplies in emergency departments. The Journal of Nursing Administration, 44(11), 606-611.