Efficiency in the healthcare sector: A hospital breaks new ground
A leading hospital was facing major challenges. Despite high patient numbers and high capacity utilization, the hospital was struggling with long waiting times and rising costs. Doctors and nursing staff were overloaded with numerous administrative tasks and excessive internal and external coordination. These inefficiencies led to considerable loss of time, duplication of work and many iterative process loops. Surveys showed a noticeable dissatisfaction within the workforce, which was reflected in rising sickness rates and higher staff turnover. Doubts were raised about the credibility of the administrative management: "You always say that things will get better soon, but nothing happens!" The hospital management then decided to react.
A comprehensive analysis process that included multi-moment analysis (MMA), work pressure analysis (WPA), calendar analysis and other methods uncovered the root causes of these inefficiencies. The most pressing problems were the high planning effort, administrative activities and numerous coordination meetings, which took up a large part of the working time of the expensive medical resources. This significantly reduced the time available for value-adding patient care. Facility management and kitchen processes were also analyzed, as these areas also led to significant delays and inefficiencies.
The multi-moment analysis (MMA) records and analyzes the use of working time. A random sampling method is used to regularly select random, predetermined times to determine which activities employees are currently performing. In addition to the activity, waste is also noted, e.g. IT problems, waiting times or error corrections. Approximately 10-15 points in time are noted per day, and the recording usually extends over two weeks. For the individual employee, this means no more than 10 minutes of additional work per day. The data is anonymized and aggregated centrally in order to obtain a precise picture of time use in the hospital. The results provide concrete indications of areas for optimization.
The work pressure analysis (WPA) evaluates the daily workload and satisfaction of employees. At the end of each day, employees note whether they have had a successful working day or whether their productivity has been affected by various factors. By collecting and analyzing data on working hours, overtime and subjective feelings of stress, overloads and dissatisfaction are identified. This method makes it possible to develop targeted measures to improve working conditions and reduce stress factors.
Shadowing involves an observer accompanying an employee during their day-to-day work in order to gain an in-depth understanding of the actual work processes and challenges. This method provides practical insights into daily activities and identifies potential areas for improvement directly on site.
With the help of numerous interviews and shadowing sessions across all departments and hierarchies, the experts gained a deep understanding of the daily processes and challenges. Targeted measures for process optimization were then developed and prioritized, including a significant streamlining of communication processes and formats as well as the introduction of new lean and digital processes.
By implementing these measures, the hospital was able to significantly increase its efficiency. The reduction in administrative work and the optimization of communication processes led to a 20% reduction in waiting times and a 15% reduction in working hours. Facility management and hospital kitchen processes were also significantly improved, resulting in faster and more efficient patient care. Overall, the various approaches led to a doubling of added value in operative patient care. Patient satisfaction increased significantly as a result of greater adherence to schedules and improved quality of patient care.
In summary, it can be said that inefficient processes and working methods can be reliably identified through a variation of analysis methods in order to subsequently define improvement measures. The anonymized process encourages openness among all stakeholders to analyze workload and efficiency and supports the implementation of measures. The individual analysis of working methods enables participants to achieve significant improvements, often independently.