By David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Have you ever wondered about the relationship between two measures. For example, what happens to patient satisfaction when people have longer wait times? A scatter plot is a graphical tool used to examine the association between two […]
Pareto Charts
in Health Care, Tools & Methods, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Have you ever heard of the 80-20 rule? While its roots are in economics and process improvement, it’s found its way into popular culture. The basic idea is that with everything we are trying to improve, 80% […]
Histograms
in Health Care, Tools & Methods, Variation, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Understanding variation is one of the key lenses of our theory of improvement. As improvers, we aim to reduce the variation of process and create a process that achieves a certain level of reliability. One tool that […]
Stratification
in Health Care, Tools & Methods, Variation, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Frequently, when you look at a problem, you may have questions about various groupings within your data. For example, is there a difference between new staff members vs. experienced staff? Do we see a difference between shifts […]
Cause and Effect Diagrams
in Health Care, Tools & Methods, VideosBy David M. Williams, PhD Harvardx course Practical Improvement Science in Health Care with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. A common challenge for improvement teams is identifying what changes you can test to improve a process or problem. One great method to help you break down ideas is a tool known as a “cause-and-effect diagram.” You […]
Standardized Symbols – Laundry Care Labels
in Tools & MethodsHave you ever paid attention to the labels on your clothes? Every garment you own comes with a care label: dry clean only, wash cold, tumble dry, etc. It’s there as a guide, aimed to help you clean your clothing properly and not do something that might shrink, damage, or alter it. I’ve done all three! […]
The Trouble With Relying on Expert Answers & Not Your Own
in Leadership, Tools & MethodsRecently, I had one of those “a-ha” moments with a client as we were working through improving a key process in his company. In the middle of our dialogue about improvement opportunities to test, he stopped me and said, “We are talking about a lot of ideas, but when are YOU going to improve it?” […]
Developing Clear Aim Statements
in Tools & Methods, UncategorizedThe Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) held its 20th Annual National Forum on Quality Improvement in Health Care in Nashville, TN this week. Thousands of healthcare leaders from across the globe were on-site and thousands more watched virtually from afar to learn about how to fundamentally change the way patients are served by applying process […]
Put on Your Thinking Hats
in Knowledge, Tools & MethodsOne of the saddest events I have had to witness with management teams is watching potentially good ideas die on the table without ever being explored. Sometimes it’s because someone claims, “we’ve done this before,” even though it’s a different time and situation. Or maybe it’s the pessimistic devil’s advocate who chimes in with all […]