Where are you Dr. Henry Ford, MD, MBA?
Will the Henry Ford of healthcare emerge from the current effort to truly lead the reinvention of the US system? Not even 100 years ago, Henry Ford refined the assembly-line concept and completely transformed the automotive industry from a highly-specialized, one-off, craft-based culture into an industrial juggernaut based on fanatical process consistency, data-driven driven decision-making, and product standardization. Costs fell almost immediately to unforeseen lows. Access to automobiles became available to everyone. Solid, competent, reliable service delivered to everyone. Isn’t this what we all crave for our Healthcare system?
I believe that true business model re-invention is at hand. Over the last few years, I have observed a growing sub-culture within the Hospital community that is exploring, and in some cases embracing, various elements of modern manufacturing systems theory. Department Heads are implementing concepts like Straight-Through-Processing, Kan-Ban, and Lean Manufacturing. Six Sigma Black Belts seem to be relishing the fresh new ground to plow they find within Hospitals. Several world-renowned Hospitals employ High-Performance Work Cells, lifted from modern manufacturing, to deliver best-in-class patient care at surprisingly low costs. Of particular notice is the innovative Narayana Hrudayalaya cardiac hospital in Bangalore (www.narayanahospitals.com) that has fully adopted the concept of ‘mass-production healthcare’ wherein world-class services are provided to the general population at very low prices by keeping volumes high, processes in control, and service variability limited. President Obama has recently visited the Cleveland Clinic to understand their modern methods of Hospital management. But this sub-culture must emerge from the shadows and be thrust into the mainstream.
Supporting this growing movement is an emergent set of tools and techniques that transcend traditional data management to provide Real-Time Forecasting and Decision Making, Real-Time Process Monitoring and Management, and Advance Resource Management. These techniques are being employed to solve some of the most difficult business management issues in a Hospital such as eliminating sources of revenue leakage, enabling Just-in-Time inventory management, managing clinical workflow compliance, and optimizing resource allocation across an enterprise.
I have observed the growing desire on the part of hospitals to transform how their businesses are being run. I am observing the invention of a new class of tools to support this transformation. Our government is providing the political environment to facilitate real change.
What we need is a new Henry Ford to emerge from this new environment to lead from the front.
Where are you Dr. Henry Ford, MD, MBA?
