Integrated models in healthcare

Yifat Lavi1
1

University of Turin, Business and management, Corso U. Sovietica 218 bis, Turin, Italy

Keywords: Integrated models, Healthcare, Six Sigma, Lean Manufacturing, DEA

Abstract
Achieving excellence can be a hard task. Many companies and organizations have the ambition of becoming
exceptional for the benefit of their customers, investors and employees. In order to achieve such goals, one needs a
robust methodology, management support and hard work.
When referring to a healthcare system, being exceptional is an ethical obligation not only an ambition.
Healthcare processes are a key determinant of the quality of care. Delays in test results, mistakes in administering
medicine, lack of information about a patient health history and radiology retakes are only a few such examples. Lack
of consistent procedures and incorrect treatments are a major health hazard in a hospital.
Healthcare workers in all departments are expected to continuously improve the quality, timeliness, and cost of their
services to the community. Six Sigma is a management methodology which combines the reduction of waste and
complexity of lean manufacturing with quality improvement and statistical data analysis. Six Sigma and the related
methodology of Lean Six Sigma allow healthcare workers to get more for their patients and increase the effectiveness
of the services they provide.
Employees in hospitals play a large role in total service outcome. All employees provide service, whether to internal
or external customers. It is essential to make sure they give the best possible service, whether it's administrative or
physiological. For this purpose, there is a need to learn what drives employees and what will ensure their satisfaction
at work which will then result in good service.
Our research combines mathematical (Six Sigma), economic (DEA) and practical (Lean) methods with human
resources methodologies (human sigma) in order to achieve the level of excellence needed by healthcare providers all
over the world.

Bibliography
John H. Flaming, Curt Coffman and James K. Harter, 2005. On "Manage your human sigma". In: Harvard Business
Review p.1-10.
Anthony J. Rucci, Steven P. Kim and Richard T. Quinn, 1998. On "The employeecustomerprofit chain at Sears". In:
Harvard Business Review p.8397.
Peter J. Sherman, 2010. On "Strengthening the Employee-customer Interaction", In: http://www.isixsigma.com/
A. Blanton Godfrey and Ron S. Kenett, 2007. On "Joseph M.Juran, a Perspective on Past Contributions and Future
Impact". In Quality Reliability Engineering International Vol.23 p.653663.
Ron S. Kenett, 2009. On "Managing Integrated Models: A challenge for Top Management and the Quality Manager".
In Gallille Annual Quality conference, Ort Braude College, Carmiel, Israel.
Silvia Salini and Ron S. Kenett, 2009. On Bayesian Networks of Customer Satisfaction Survey Data. In: Journal of
Applied Statistics, Vol. 36, No. 11, pp. 1177-1189.
Ron S. Kenett, 2004. On "The Integrated Model, Customer Satisfaction Surveys and Six Sigma". In: The First
International Six Sigma Conference, CAMT, Wroclaw, Poland.
Apichat Sopadang, 2009. On "Desirability Function", In: Faculty of engineering Chiang Mai University.
Mary Jean Ryan and William Paul Thompson, 2007. On Cqi and the Renovation of an American Health Care System:
A Culture Under Construction. In: ASQC Quality Press.
Thomas G. Zidel, 2006. On A lean guide to transforming healthcare, In ASQ quality press.