Working with:

    Philips Healthcare
    Philips Incubator
    Catalyst Consulting, Associate Partner
    NHS Wales
    Heartlands Hospital NHS Trust
    Ashford St Peters NHS Trust
    St George's Hospital, Tooting
    Covidien, now Medtronic
    UKRC – Moderator
    Mentor to GPs and Consultants

Continuous Quality Improvement

Success in continuous quality improvement requires: the patient to be placed at the heart of the process; a structured approach to improvement methodology is used; and, data to evidence the current situation and the impact of changes

Diagnostic stage

In any improvement effort, the key is to understand the problem you want to solve, understand the appropriate tools and techniques and how and when to use them, training can be provide in the following:

Mapping: value stream and process maps, fishbone, A3 problem solving, root cause analysis, value/non value added work, capacity and demand, statistical process control (SPC), Takt time and waste.

Redesign stage

Once the root cause of the problem has been defined and measured, the next stage is to redesign the service or system, the following tools can be used:

PDSA, standard work, visual management, workload levelling, 5S and eliminating carve out.

Sustain stage

History tells us that an improvement today will be gone tomorrow if steps are not taken to plan for sustainability from the beginning, some of the tools reuired to support this are:

30, 60, 90 day reviews, benefits realisation, cost quality, safety, delivery and SHINGO operational excellence.

Human Dimensions of Change and Patient User Engagement

Whilst the skills and improvement tools and techniques can be read and taught, the greatest challenge of implementing change is managing the human dimensions of change. Few people like change and many a brilliant idea can be lost or not adopted due to the lack of understanding the impact change can have on people. Some of the tools and techniques required to understand and successfully manage change:

Personal strengths, team strengths, facilitating, coaching, mentoring and engagement of executives, clinicians, patients and users.


Testimonials

  • Professor Helen Bevan

    Lesley has a phenomenal knowledge base and expertise in improvement science and an outstanding track record in transforming diagnostic services.

  • Cindy Jimmerson, Lean Healthcare West, Montana, USA (Author of: A3 problem solving for Healthcare and Value stream mapping for Healthcare made easy)

    Lesley Wright presented at our annual conference, reporting on the advance of healthcare in the NHS related to Lean. Her enthusiasm and creativity in the work that she guided were clearly contributors to the success of the improvements.

  • Dr Simon Knowles, National Clinical Lead for Cyto-Histopathology

    Lesley’s approach to pathway improvement is rigorous and pivots around a strong focus on baseline data. She approaches each new project with genuine clarity and, because of a commitment to “learning by doing” she is able to impart a similar critical vision to the clinical teams she works with. The true measure of success in continuous quality improvement is sustainability. It is a testament to Lesley’s leadership that so many of the pilot sites continue to survive and thrive at a high level, unsupervised up to five years after the initial intervention.