ABSTRACT
Donna wasn’t present for the Tuesday morning crisis meeting. She was on her way to a conference in San Diego, in hopes of finding someone to conduct Lean training. Everyone else was present, and Nick began the meeting. “I want to start this morning by once again thanking all of you for your help. We’ve collected a lot of information, identified a methodology, discussed implementation, and identified pitfalls. We’re getting very close to Friday’s presentation. I’d like to discuss how to best put all this information into an understandable format. I’m thinking I’d like to open with Joe’s ‘Reactive Cycle for Dealing with Financial Instability.’ I will explain how our method for dealing with the hospital’s financial situation has had a negative effect on quality. We will need some hard numbers here, Joe. I know that you have compiled some very useful data, but anything else you can get before Friday will be helpful. I don’t want to talk in general terms or use national averages. I know the board members will be asking for specific examples here at the hospital. Next, I’ll explain how layoffs and budget cuts have created an environment where people are overwhelmed and overburdened, which, in turn, has led to an increase in errors. I will use Megan’s graphs to confirm this information.”
