Leveraging Lean in Healthcare : Transforming Your Enterprise into a High Quality Patient Care Delivery System

The river basin is no longer the appropriate spatial unit for analysing water problems. With increasing trade between nations and continents, water is more and more often used to produce goods that are exported. This book analyses this issue for the first time on a global scale. It addresses questions such as: Is the import of water in virtual form � in the form of imported commodities � a solution to water scarce countries? What threats are there in countries becoming �water dependent�? Can international trade be a tool to enhance global water use efficiency, or is it a means of shifting the environment burden to a distant location? The book shows the water footprint of nations, a consumer based indicator of water use which can be used as a tool to understand the impacts of local consumption on global water resources and the dependency of any country on external water resources.

Winner of a 2013 Shingo Research and Professional Publication AwardThis practical guide for healthcare executives, managers, and frontline workers, provides the means to transform your enterprise into a High-Quality Patient Care Business Delivery System. Designed for continuous reference, its self-contained chapters are divided into three primary sections:Defines what Lean is and includes some interesting history about Lean not found elsewhere. Describes and explains the application of each Lean tool and concept organized in their typical order of use.Explains how to implement Lean in various healthcare processes�providing examples, case studies, and valuable lessons learned This book will help to take you out of your comfort zone and provide you with new ways to extend value to your customers. It drives home the importance of the Lean Six Sigma journey. The pursuit of continuous improvement is a journey with no end. Consequently, the opportunities are endless as to what you and your organization can accomplish.Forty percent of the authors� profits from this book will be donated to help the homeless through two Baltimore charities.Praise for the book:� well-timed and highly informative for those committed to creating deep levels of sustainable change in healthcare.� Peter B. Angood, MD, FACS, FCCM, Senior Advisor � Patient Safety, in National Quality Forum� the most practical and healthcare applicable book I have ever read on LEAN thinking and concepts. � Gary Shorb, CEO, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare... well written ... an essential reference in the library of all healthcare leaders interested in performance improvement.� Lee M. Adler, DO, VP, Quality and Safety Innovation and Research, Florida Hospital, Orlando; Asso