Synopsis
Hospitals have long relied on the heroics of one brilliant nurse or doctor to save the day. Such heroics often result in temporary workarounds and quick fixes that leave not only patients and quality care at risk, but also increase costs. This is the story of an organization breaking that habit. Like a growing number of healthcare organizations around the world, ThedaCare, Inc. has been using lean thinking and the principles of the Toyota Production System to improve quality of care, reduce waste, and become more reliable. But lean thinking was incompatible with ThedaCare s old top-down, hero-based system of management. Kim Barnas, former SVP of ThedaCare, shows us how she and her team created a management system that is stable and lean, to spur continuous improvement.Beyond Heroes shows the reader, step by step, how ThedaCare teams developed the system, using the stories of its doctors, nurses and administrators to illustrate lean principles. The book explores each of the eight essential components of the lean system, from front-line problem solving with the scientific method to daily team huddles and creating standard work for leaders all the way to the top of an organization. Finally, the author introduces four executives from healthcare systems across North America who have implemented ThedaCare s system and share the lessons they learned along the way.Beyond Heroes is not just a call to action or an argument for a better healthcare system. It is a necessary roadmap through the rocky terrain ahead, one that healthcare leaders can customize to their special needs.
About the Author
Kim Barnas, President ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value Kim is based in Appleton to support operations. Her focus is to coach, lead and support center teams that are working to help healthcare systems committed to: Transforming the patient experience Making quality more transparent Reducing healthcare costs across North America.Prior to her role at the Center, Kim served as a senior vice president for ThedaCare, a seven-hospital system in Northeastern Wisconsin, and as president of Appleton Medical Center and Theda Clark Medical Center. While in that role, she led a team in the development of ThedaCare s renowned lean management system. It is designed to deliver improved performance through a predictable process that develops leaders, identifies defects, solves problems and develops people. In 2014, Kim authored Beyond Heroes: A Lean Management System for Healthcare based on her ThedaCare journey. After writing the book, she became a senior advisor to several national and international healthcare leadership teams implementing lean. She advised top leaders within healthcare organizations, providing the tools and framework for successful lean implementations. She also served as Center faculty before joining us full time. Kim has a Master s of Science in Health Care Administration from Cardinal Stritch University.
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