SC7\u2005Developing a LEAN culture in your simulation centre

Abstract

Introduction LEAN defined in its simplest form, is ‘a set of techniques to identify and eliminate waste from operations.’ (Lean Enterprise Institute, 2018). Key drivers to the success of LEAN efficiency are the staff, who must be innovative and have a strong desire for change implementation. Many organisations suffer with a ‘this is how we do things around here’ mentality, which is a common manipulation trick that ultimately stunts progression. These characteristics do not fall into a LEAN mind-set, one of which conducted properly can save your simulation centre time and money. Method Two such projects that I have implemented are outlined below. Healthcare related products can be quite costly; therefore, it is important to implement cost saving initiatives to ensure that your budget does not exceed or to free up funds to spend on other teaching materials. I carried out a surgical sutures exercise, which proved to be a tricky yet worthwhile task. It involved carrying out a price review analysis and convincing surgical delegates to switch brands. Cost saving projects are only possible when practical; therefore, it is equally important to be efficient with time spent on tasks in order to enable technicians to support these initiatives. I significantly reduced the time spent on gathering, cleaning and sorting surgical instruments in the wet lab space, by introducing basic instrument sets. This put the onus on delegates to put their sets back together after each teaching session, and the characteristics of the basket sets allowed for efficient washing and drying thereafter. Results The surgical sutures exercise represented a saving of 27%. The basket instrument set initiative reduced instrument arrangement time from 1 hour and 14 minutes to 16 minutes per teaching session. Conclusion A LEAN culture in your simulation centre entices employee engagement and subsequently motivates staff, thus adding value to operations and learning. References Lean enterprise institute (2018) ‘What’s your definition of LEAN?’. Available at https://www.lean.org/balle/DisplayObject.cfm?o=4741 (Accessed: 16 April 2019).