First, it is necessary to present the definition of the word waste.
In the dictionary, the masculine noun waste means “expense or exaggerated expenditure; waste” and “unprofitable use; loss".
These meanings can already demonstrate how waste is harmful at any time.
In health, the methodology LEAN seeks to reduce variations and improve processes and this allows reduction of waste, it promotes understanding of hospital routines, in addition to requiring actions that add value and satisfaction to patients.
This term add value to patients Today it receives a lot of attention, due to the importance of improvements focusing on patients.
O LEAN in healthcare seeks to facilitate, improve, speed up and make processes cheaper.
To achieve this, it is very important to identify and analyze which activities in hospitals:
- Add value (Ex: Check list before surgeries);
- They do not add value, but they are necessary (Ex: filling out several forms to receive reimbursement for medical appointments);
- They do not add value (Ex: Delays in patient exams).
To identify these activities, healthcare employees, who are on the front line, are the most qualified, as they know where the day-to-day failures and successes are. After all, they are the ones who carry out the processes and can feel the results.
After this classification, it will be possible to define which activities consume a lot or little energy from the processes and which ones add a lot, little or no value to patients. And this is fundamental to achieving waste.
In industry, he was a Toyota engineer, taiichi ohno who identified the 7 main wastes in the sector and from them it was also possible to determine the 7 main wastes in healthcare.
They are:
- OVERPRODUCTION (Ex: repeating and carrying out unnecessary exams);
- WAIT (Ex: waiting for appointments, surgeries and materials);
- TRANSPORT (Ex: materials, devices and patients);
- CIRCULATION (Ex: personnel, materials, equipment);
- INVENTORY – STOCK (Ex: More materials and medicines than necessary);
- ERRORS AND DEFECTS (Ex: medication errors, surgery errors, stopped machines, rework, failures);
- SUPERPROCESSING (Ex: repetition of activities, asking the same thing several times).
Another waste that was not mentioned above, but which is also very important is the waste of human talent.
It is necessary to listen and pay attention to employees, as they are major barriers to avoiding failures.
Several contributors identify poorly designed processes related to healthcare. And because of their experiences, they will be able to prevent mistakes from being repeated or not happening at all. Therefore, not valuing employees is also a waste.
Conclusion
In Health, costs are higher every day, there are new technologies, new problems, new investments. It is necessary to develop strategies to eliminate waste.
According to National Health Council from the Federal Government, in 2019 health no longer had an investment of R$20 billion.
This value shows that less than 2019% of the Union's revenue resources were invested in Brazilian health in 15.
The IBGE presented in 2019 that in 2034 the percentage of the population over 65 years old will reach 15% of the entire Brazilian population, and in 2060 it will reach 25,5%.
This means that this aging population will require an investment of R$50,7 billion in health between 2020 and 2027.
But according to the Agency Brazil, 30% of private healthcare spending in Brazil goes to waste.
It takes a lot of money to cover errors, which are mostly avoidable. This has to end.
It is essential to measure, analyze, improve and control results, to develop improvements in a structured way.
To achieve this, modifications must be effective and add value.
All professionals, managers, patients, financiers and buyers must be united around a common objective: Changes that include cost reduction without reducing quality and safety.
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