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Patient safety in the operating theatre: how A3 thinking can help reduce door movement.
- Source :
- International Journal for Quality in Health Care; Aug2014, Vol. 26 Issue 4, p366-371, 6p
- Publication Year :
- 2014
-
Abstract
- Issue Research has often stressed the significance of reducing door movement during surgery for preventing surgical site infections. This study investigated the possible effect of a lean A3 intervention on the reduction of door movement during surgery in a university medical center in the Netherlands. Initial assessment A digital counter recorded door movement during 8009 surgical procedures during 8 months. The number of door movements per surgical procedure ranged from 0 to 555, with a mean of 24 door movements per hour across 26 specialisms. Choice of solution We aimed to reduce door movement in one operating room for orthopedic surgery by a lean A3 intervention. This intervention was executed by means of an A3 report that promotes structured problem solving based on a Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle. Implementation The steps of the A3 report was followed and completed one-by-one by a multidisciplinary team. The effect of the changes was monitored over the course of 12 months. Evaluation The use of a lean A3 intervention resulted in a sustainable decrease of door movements by 78%, from a mean of 24 to a mean of 4 door movements per hour during orthopedic surgery at one OR. Lessons learned This paper shows the relevance of and the possibility for a reduction of door movement during surgery by lean management methods in general and an A3 intervention in particular. This intervention stimulated dialogue and encouraged knowledge-sharing and collaboration between specialized healthcare professionals and this resulted in a thorough root-cause analysis that provided synergy in the countermeasures—with, according to respondents, a sustainable result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 13534505
- Volume :
- 26
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- International Journal for Quality in Health Care
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 97421484
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1093/intqhc/mzu033