ABSTRACT

My purpose in this chapter is to build an appreciation of the science of reliability. It is not my intention to cover all of the concepts that are used in organizations that have been used in achieving high reliability. I have used these concepts in achieving zero defects for years in a variety of industries and now in healthcare where they are just as necessary. I ask you to at least browse the math and read the entire text because I will cover what differentiates highly reliable organizations from many in healthcare. In fact, there are some concepts in this chapter that are universally applied outside of healthcare, and not once have I met a person applying them in healthcare-yet.