Field Guide to Rapid Process Improvement Workshops in Healthcare : Applying Lean to Improve Quality and Patient Experience

This book takes the reader through the process to plan, deliver, and follow-up a weeklong Lean Quality Improvement event, usually termed a ‘Rapid Improvement Event’ or ‘Rapid Process Improvement Workshop (RPIW).’ Drawing on the experience of conducting over 100 of these workshops, the book gives readers the information to plan and run their own event. It describes how RPIWs fit in to wider improvement processes and how the reader can maximize these processes in their own organization.

These weeklong improvement events are popular in health and social care, but there are no textbooks available to support them. There are several books that describe the use of shorter Kaizen events in health care, but none that describe the process of delivering weeklong events. The events have a rhythm specific to the one-week format, and the book seeks to help people to make use of best practice and to avoid common problems.

Based on the experiences of the authors, this book includes an introduction to Lean concepts linked to the relevant part of the process description; examples and templates of forms that can be used in workshops; and photographs of actual events.

Gavin Hookway has over 30 years’ experience working in healthcare within NHS Scotland, NHS England and Private/Independent Sectors. He has extensive knowledge of Operating Theatres, from both operational and managerial perspectives, and is driven to provide safe, high quality patientcare, in the most efficient and equitable manner. Gavin is a certified Continuous Improvement Leader and Coach accredited through the Tees, Esk and Wear Valley NHS Foundation Trust. In 2022, Gavin founded Hookway Quality Improvement Services, HQIS, an online company which aims to support people and organisations through their improvement journey.

Gill McVicar originally trained as a nurse and midwife, working in several roles, latterly in the community in Highland. She left clinical practice to work as Quality Facilitator and then held many managerial posts within the NHS. She gained experience as Director of Operations and then, due to her passion for improving care and development of staff, moved back to focus on continuous quality improvement as Director of Quality and Transformation. After retiring from the NHS, Gill has worked as a Client Facilitation Consultant on developing a People Plan and supporting training and coaching in quality improvement and lean methodologies. As well as clinical and professional qualifications, Gill trained in Health Economics and as a certified Lean Leader and Coach with the Virginia Mason Institute.

Cameron Stark MB ChB, MPH, MSc (Dist), MRCPsych, FFPH, is an Honorary Reader and Part-time Lecturer at the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) Outer Hebrides. Cameron leads the UHI postgraduate module on the application of Lean in healthcare. After graduating from the University of Glasgow, he trained in psychiatry and public health and worked as an NHS Public Health Doctor for over 30 years. Cameron was the quality improvement science lead for NHS Highland and trained as a Lean leader with Tees, Esk and Wear Valley NHS Foundation Trust. He has published over 60 papers in peer-reviewed journals, written 11 book chapters, and has written or edited 7 previous textbooks.

Hugo van Woerden. Hugo is the Director of InsightPro Ltd, a small health consultancy. He is also a Visiting Professor in the University of the Highlands and Islands.