HEALTHCARE| SUPPLY CHAIN HEADACHES?
The Lean Playbook Part 1 – TPM
In a series of discussions, we will talk about the major supply chain issues facing the healthcare industries, I look forward to some critical comments and feedback to these posting as the collective mind is truly better than the individual.
Supply Chain waste is expected to exceed $6 billion in 2016, ranking it the second highest issue (payment reimbursement) that health care providers are facing.
While a majority of Healthcare administrators are tackling the problem, there is a lack of confidence in the effectiveness, or the perception that more can be done as most believe there is a direct correlation between an effective supply chain and quality of care.
Some of the issues blocking change is adoption of technology such as RFID, effective lean culture and lack of an end-to-end view of the supply chain from medical device manufactures to patient care. While the lean playbook is known, hardly any of the pages are being turned.
One of the biggest tools in the box is total productive maintenance (TPM), a lean strategy that focuses on eliminating costly downtime caused by reactive maintenance—fixing equipment after it breaks. TPM has three main goals: zero breakdowns, zero defects and zero accidents.
Andy Carlino, co-founder and partner at Lean Learning Center, views TPM as healthcare for equipment. “It’s similar to doing regular self-examinations and monitoring your diet to maintain your health and prevent sickness before it happens,” he says.
TPM occurs at multiple times during the cycle, preventive maintenance (PM) is done during scheduled downtime, but usually what gets neglected is maintenance to be done while the machine is running (production), which can prevent breakdowns and unscheduled downtime costing 3x more, and taking 5x more time to repair.
“The “total” in TPM means all employees, not just maintenance workers, are responsible for equipment health” – he adds. “With TPM, problems are detected earlier because of operator involvement. Operators notice small problems, which eventually become big problems if unchecked. With TPM, everyone is engaged in the healthcare system for equipment,” Carlino says. “Think of it as you, your spouse, your doctor and your dietician all being engaged in your health, rather than just the doctor.”
Last thought, if you are ready to start your lean culture and TPM, make sure it is a hybrid approach of culture and reliability (RCM), that will eliminate everything that is not necessary to achieve your goals. TPM is the only proven work culture that promotes and sustains reliable equipment at lower cost!
There are some striking resemblances between the philosophies of TPM and Healthcare. In my annual checkup with my doctor, he gave me a few pieces of advice to change my lifestyle, stating that a few minutes a day of exercise and good judgment of my food, will prevent me from having long term issues like diabetes, high blood pressure and avoid “downtime” from major issues like heart attacks and strokes.
Hmmm…. Food for thought!
