Emory Transplant Center Quality Driven by Lean Methodology

Even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, experts at the Emory Transplant Center continue to keep quality at the forefront of our daily operations. We use a technique known as Lean methodology to pursue quality improvement initiatives that ultimately benefit our patients. This philosophy, first developed by Toyota, helps us reduce wasteful actions that impede our ability to provide the best care possible.

Instead of focusing on separate technologies, assets, and departments within the Emory Transplant Center, we use Lean methodology to optimize the flow of our services by improving staff commitment and eliminating waste throughout the entire patient care process. This process includes regular review of all activities to determine which actions may create opportunities for improvement.

Additionally, regular team-based problem-solving sessions focus on brainstorming improvements, fixing known problems, and implementing solutions to enhance our care quality. And while some solutions may not be achievable instantly, each member of our quality improvement team dedicates a great deal of time and effort to find ways to improve our patients’ care and experience.

This process has already helped us reduce patient’s lobby wait times from an average of 45 minutes to only 20 minutes. We look forward to continuing these sustainment efforts to best suit the needs of our patients, staff members, and providers.

Adapting Standard Laboratory Practices to Better Serve Patients

Recently, the Transplant Center team recognized that patients were frequently experiencing delays in getting their laboratory work completed in our clinic. Using Lean methodology, we standardized the chart preparation process to ensure the correct lab orders were entered into our electronic medical records (EMR) system the day before each patient’s appointment.

We also began using an EMR lab messaging tool so that certain staff members, including the lead nurse, lab supervisor, and program coordinator, could easily and efficiently communicate any last-minute additions to orders. We have made it our priority to ensure this solution is sustained over the long term by escalating any laboratory-related issues to the team daily.