by David M. Williams, Ph.D. Photo by İrfan Simsar on Unsplash Whether you are a leader in a new role or one wanting to reboot your current one, you need an approach to make your work visible, to assess current conditions, and make a game plan. Here is guidance to help. Reviewing key inputs A good […]
Using Your Vector of Measures to Guide Action
in Measurement, Quality as a Business Strategy (QBS), Systems, Tools & Methods, VariationBy David M. Williams, Ph.D. Figure. Vector of Measures Displayed in Shewhart Charts Source: Mecklenburg EMS Agency, Charlotte, NC, USA One of the toughest struggles for leaders is figuring out how to focus attention on the work that best serves the customer and will get the desired results. A great place to begin is your […]
Prioritizing Improvement Efforts
in Improvement Science, Knowledge, Quality as a Business Strategy (QBS), Systems, Tools & MethodsBy David M. Williams, Ph.D. Making changes to a process is essential to improvement. Improvement efforts require chartering projects that will impact strategic processes requiring design or redesign. Organizations routinely struggle with selecting processes needing improvement and that will achieve the organization’s objectives. What follows is a structured process, using qualitative methods, to support selecting […]
Drilling Down into Aggregate Data
in Improvement Science, Measurement, Quality as a Business Strategy (QBS), Tools & Methods, VariationBy David M. Williams, Ph.D. Every organization tracks a family of measures with data from various moments of time. The list of indicators often blend measures created by leadership with a mix of from other sources like accreditation bodies, regulators, and benchmarking vendors. These data are usually at an aggregate level or minimally stratified by […]
Benchmarking – How do we compare?
in Health Care, Improvement Science, Measurement, Tools & Methods, VariationBy David M. Williams, Ph.D. No one likes to talk about dying. Sudden death due to heart disease occurs 250,000 times a year in the United States. A person is just living their life and unexpectedly their heart stops. Just like that…you’re officially clinically dead. Not so fast. If this happens when you’re not […]
Back-of-the-Envelope Problem Solving
in Education, Implementation, Improvement Science, PDSA, Systems, Tools & MethodsBy David M. Williams, Ph.D. The Breakthrough Series Collaborative model is an improvement learning system that brings teams together to pursue a shared aim. Teams use an evidence-based change theory and improvement methods including the Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) Cycle and time-series data (run charts and Shewhart Control Charts). In the Institute for Healthcare […]
What’s Your Management Method?
in Improvement Science, Leadership, Quality as a Business Strategy (QBS)By David M. Williams, Ph.D. Source: James L Reinertsen, MD, The Reinertsen Group Recently I sat down with Dr. Jim Reinersten to think about what makes traditional leaders shift to being quality leaders. Dr. Reinersten is a rheumatologist by training and former hospital chief executive. He’s also a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement […]
Problem-Solving by Learning From the Process
in Improvement Science, Knowledge, Systems, Tools & Methods, VariationBy David M. Williams, Ph.D. Photo by Bluehouse Skis on Unsplash Let’s face it…patient care documentation is not the most enjoyable aspect of clinical care delivery. It takes time, the electronic medical record isn’t user friendly, and caregivers have a lot going on. It’s no surprise improving clinical documentation is a common improvement opportunity for a […]
How Leaders Decide a Change is Needed
in Improvement Science, Knowledge, Leadership, Quality as a Business Strategy (QBS), SystemsBy David M. Williams, Ph.D. Photo by Tetiana SHYSHKINA on Unsplash Have you ever searched your computer hard drive only to be surprised by the number of files and multiple versions of a similar theme? I have hundreds of Microsoft PowerPoint presentations from client engagements, trainings, and conferences I’ve delivered and dozens of Microsoft Word documents of blog […]
Control Charts – What’s in a name?
in Measurement, Tools & Methods, Variationby David M. Williams, Ph.D. Provost & Murray. (2010). Health Care Data Guide. Figure 14.18. P. 127 Have you taken one of those silly quizzes on social media that ask you to answer several questions and then it tells you what political candidate is most like you or what part of the country you’re from? […]