homework assignment 2

I. Answer the following questions in the space provided below:

Explain the importance of variation to health-care organizations and answer the following questions.

1. What might be the key processes for health-care organizations?
2. What are the potential common causes of variation that would have an impact on the key processes of health-care organizations?
3. What special causes might be more important than the others?
4. How might health-care organizations’ business environment be dynamic and change over time?

II.

Use the data in the table above and answer the following questions in the space provided below:

1. What are the sources of value-added and non-value-added work in this process?
2. Where are the main opportunities to improve the cycle time of this process, with respect to both actual time used and the potential best times? What strategy would you use?
3. Step 10: Resolve Open Issues required 104 hours (potential) versus 106 hours (actual). Is there an OFI here? Why or why not? If so, how would you attack it?
4. What do you think are the most difficult critical issues to deal with when designing a sound cycle time study such as this one?