But if Lean is to maintain good health, waste reduction cannot be the driver and must be seen as a useful enabler. Lean must be defined and promoted for its strategic purpose—delivering flexibly quick, high-quality service everywhere along the value chain to patients. Seen this way, Lean can implant itself as a permanent organizational strategy.
Jenna, my physical therapist, may have been like many in health care, viewing Lean as something of a pedestrian imposition, and that training time would be better spent on patient care. At a more recent visit to PT with a different therapist, I spotted Jenna across the room. She called over to me and said, “I changed my mind. Now I like Lean!” That’s great, I thought. She’s happily chasing down wastes. Now, if only the facility’s leadership can come to understand Lean’s customer-side purpose and build it in as a fixed element of strategic management.
Richard J. Schonberger, PhD, president of Schonberger & Associates in Seattle, is the author of more than 170 articles and papers, as well as several books.