Efficiency Assessment in Emergency Department Using Lean Thinking Approach

Abstract

Lean thinking approach plays a vital role in reducing waste and enhancing productivity in production environment and service setups. Lean thinking approach may be employed in cutting down the patients' waiting time in emergency departments and hospitals. Also, lean thinking approach may be used in testing the usage of the existing facilities planned and constructed for customers' use. In the present study, lean manufacturing approach has been used to test the usage of the emergency department's services. Four vital sections of the hospital emergency department viz. Male Treatment Room (MTR), Female Treatment Room (FTR), Male Observation Room (MOR), and Female Observation Room (FOR), are studied in terms of bed occupancy. Using the concept of takt time, an individual department efficiency and relative efficiency have been calculated to find the waiting time of customers intending to use the emergency services. A case of a governmental, non-profit and teaching hospital in the southern region of Saudi Arabia has been used to present the methodology based on lean manufacturing approach systematically. In conclusion, the present study revealed that extra equipped beds have been used in these four rooms in the emergency department that can be allocated to the other crowding witnessed rooms of the same department.