Assignment 3.2: The Lunchroom: Physician Engagement at a PCMH

Owner:

Date:

Case:

Define and Analyze the Problem

Develop, Implement, and Control Solution(s)

Background:

What is the context of the issue? Who are the key players and what are their view points? Are there conflicts to be resolved? Briefly explain the history. How does the problem fit within the organization’s goals? Why is this problem important to the patient/organization? What are the consequences of the problem? Why is a change needed? What are the symptoms of the problem?

Future State:

Draw a diagram of a new way to work. Create measureable targets for new way to work. What are the success factors? Define requirements of future state.

Problem Statement:

Be specific. Is the focus of improvement appropriately scoped to be described to sufficient detail within this A3? Avoid defining a problem as its consequence, symptom or solution. A sentence or two describing Where, When, What, How Much, How Do You Know, and What is "The Pain"?

Current State:

What is going on? Use facts. Be visual – use Pareto charts, pie charts, sketches. Draw a diagram of what happens now. Identify problems explicitly in the diagram. What are the key measures or metrics that can describe the current state?

Identify, Test, and Implement Countermeasures

What will be done to test and validate those countermeasures? (Think quality improvement cycles).

Countermeasure #1:

Countermeasure #2:

Countermeasure #3:

Implementation Plan: Must include consultation of all this impacted.

Problem Analysis:

Use the simplest problem-analysis tool that will suffice to find the root cause of the problem: Five whys, fishbone diagram, FMEA, etc. Does the problem above contain multiple root causes? Do causes align to explicitly illustrated problems in the current state section? Prioritize problems.

Measure and Control Improvements:

Define operational effectiveness. Chart, as appropriate. This data becomes the new Current State in the Continuous Quality Improvement cycle.

Define verification plan. Define plan to sustain and control changes. Develop Control Plan.

Follow-up & Lessons Learned:

What issues remain that need to be closed? What worked? What could be improved?