by David M. Williams, Ph.D. This is part of a series of blog posts on measurement for improvement. You can read them all here. One of the most common questions for a new improver is: How many data points do I need to start a chart? The answer is just 1. Starting with the first […]
No judgment. Measurement for improvement.
in Measurementby David M. Williams, Ph.D. This is part of a series of blog posts on measurement for improvement. You can read them all here. The primary purpose of measurement for accountability is confirmation if a measure meets or does not meet the established target. These measures are common in social systems. Examples include: Targets to […]
Please STOP the Red, Yellow, Green
in Measurementby David M. Williams, Ph.D. This is part of a series of blog posts on measurement for improvement. You can read them all here. There is an epidemic spreading globally affecting leaders and their use and display of data. In a recent article in the ACHE HealthCare Executive publication, fellow improvement advisor Brandon Bennett and […]
QOS: Activity 2 – Organization Viewed as a System
in Measurement, Quality as an Organizational Strategy (QOS), Systemsby David M. Williams, Ph.D. In a recent blog post (here), I shared how Associates in Process Improvement transformed Dr. Deming’s theory of Organizations Viewed as a Production System into a five-part approach known as Quality as an Organizational Strategy. In this series, we’ll take a deeper look at each of the five activities including […]
Coin Spin PDSA Exercise
in Building Capability, Knowledge, Measurement, PDSA, Variation, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Several years ago, I was facilitating an improvement learning session and planned to use an exercise to help the participants learn how to do proper PDSAs and track data over time in a run chart. Normally, I would use my Mr. Potato Head PDSA exercise, but I didn’t want to carry […]
New Paper – Adverse Event Trigger Tool for EMS
in Measurement, ResearchOver the last several years, through my work at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and as a subject matter expert in paramedic delivery systems, I’ve had the pleasure to work with the great team at Hamad Medical Corporation’s national ambulance service. HMC Ambulance leaders aspired to develop an ambulance trigger tool modeled after the IHI […]
Video: Four Run Chart Rules
in Health Care, Measurement, Tools & Methods, Variation, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. So as we’re getting enough data, we have the ability to start using more sophisticated tools. And when we get 12 data points in a run chart, we can begin to use four rules to help us […]
Creating a Run Chart in Microsoft Excel
in Health Care, Measurement, Tools & Methods, Variation, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Now you can build a run chart by hand, and I actually strongly encourage that, because it’s really useful to sit down and have that relationship with putting your own data in and knowing where the changes […]
The Elements of a Run Chart
in Health Care, Measurement, Tools & Methods, Variation, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. A run chart includes several elements. There’s a y-axis, that’s the one that goes up and down on the left hand side, and this shows what you’re actually measuring. This is what your data is about. Along […]
An Example of Using Data
in Measurement, Public Safety, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Here’s an example from an ambulance service. By contract, the service has to achieve a response time performance goal of 90%. So the board report shows the percentages on time each month. As long as the goal […]