Six Sigma in Healthcare

09/28/2007

Is this Six Sigma philosophy something that could be translated over to the mental health field?
Margaret J.

When one thinks of a Six Sigma program strictly in terms of "defect reduction", it can sometimes be difficult to see how it can be applied to many processes. Nonetheless, once we realize that all processes have customers, and these customers may have unfulfilled expectations, than we can understand that any process can produce error. These errors are not limited to so-called "quality issues", but also to cost and service issues.
Within the mental health field, as in any health-related field, there are unfulfilled expectations, including delays in service and unnecessary costs.
If we can identify the occurrence of such conditions, we can then define projects to reduce their occurrence and improve service, quality and cost to the clientele. Of course, some of the issues may be at least partly outside our control, while others may require a rethinking of our defined processes and systems. Sometimes that rethinking is only limited by our imagination.

Learn more about the Lean Six Sigma principles and tools for process excellence in Six Sigma Demystified (2011, McGraw-Hill) by Paul Keller, in his online Lean Six Sigma DMAIC short course ($249), or his online Green Belt certification course ($499).