BTOES EXCLUSIVE SLIDE DECK: Training New Physicians in Lean Healthcare Improvement

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Courtesy of NCH Healthcare System, 'Training New Physicians in Lean Healthcare Improvement' Mustafa Abdulali and Dr. David Linz have written an article to introduce their presentation:

Please click here to download the presentation.

As the practice of medicine evolves, so must the training of new physicians. Learn how NCH Healthcare System is using Lean methodology in their graduate medical education program to prepare internal medicine residents for their future careers as practicioners and physician leaders. Physicians must learn to work in multidisciplinary teams to care for patients, improve outcomes, and lower costs. Becoming a competent physicians takes more than getting the right diagnosis, it requires understanding the business of healthcare.

This presentation will not only give examples of how NCH Healthcare System is using a classroom based curriculum within the constraints of a residency schedule, but also how we are using team based projects for experiental learning. Residents are coached throughout the year by a dyad of physician mentors and Lean engineers. Classroom instruction is provided to coincide with the phase of the improvement project. In this way residents are challenged to learn by doing in a supportive environment.

We are teaching resident physicians structured problem solving so that they can recognize issues that they see in their daily work, understand the root cause, and apply countermeasures appropriately. Residents are learning to use A3s, much like they use SOAP progress notes with their clinical work, to document their project phases, communicate with team members, and receive coaching from mentors. We hope that this will help shift the local culuture of our own institution and help bring about a larger change when the residents graduate and practice in other communities.

About NCH Healthcare System

NCH Healthcare System is an alliance of more than 700 independent physicians and medical facilities in dozens of locations throughout Collier County and southwest Florida. They offer advanced comprehensive, patient-centered care as well as embrace new, effective ideas in medical care and healing. It has had considerable benefits with operational excellence since they embarked on this journey several years ago, but how have they sustained this in the organization? Download this slide deck to see Mustafa Abdulali and Dr. David Linz discuss their journey, and how to develop a Lean curriculum at your institution to train physicians for the challenges of providing lower cost and higher quality care.

About the Authors

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Mustafa Abdulali, Director of Lean Transformation of NCH Healthcare System (in Naples, FL), is focused on engineering a culture that embraces structured problem solving using tools and techniques from process improvement methodologies such as Lean and Six Sigma. He previously worked as the Director of Performance Improvement at Main Line Health in Philadelphia, PA and had spent over a decade in the Automotive and Aerospace industries where he held a variety of positions.

Mustafa has a Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, an MBA from the University of Florida and is an American Society of Quality Certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt.

Dr. David Linz, Chief Medical Informatics Officer of NCH Healthcare System, is an Internal Medicine physician who practices in Marco Island, Florida. He is a key core faculty member and the Director of Quality Improvement and Research for the NCH Healthcare System Internal Medicine Residency Program, an affiliate of Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science.

These slides were first presented at the Business Transformation and Operational Excellence World Summit (BTOES). To learn more, please visit btoes.com.