24 Aug 2010
Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH), the newest hospital built in the northern part of Singapore, hosted the Secretary General of NTUC, Lim Swee Say, and some 60 union leaders from the industrial, public and service sectors today.SG Lim and the union leaders learned about various initiatives that KTPH had implemented to enhance productivity levels and enhance customer experiences across the hospital.
Systems productivity
Alexandra Health adopts the principles of the Toyota Production System (TPS), which is mainly used by manufacturing organisations, to increase and maintain productivity and efficiency in the delivery of care. These principles were put into place at Alexandra Hospital and were used in the planning of KTPH.
In line with the TPS focus on continuous improvement or “Kaizen”, hospital staff regularly examine workflows to streamline processes for the benefit and convenience of patients. In addition, the hospital practices lean quality management by removing non-value added activities or waste from processes and services through “5S”: Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardise, Sustain.
Customer productivity
TPS principles have enabled KTPH to enhance efficiency by eliminating unnecessary steps in the workflow process. For example, the hospital provides a one-stop pharmacy within the Day Surgery Centre and the Acute Care and Emergency (A&E) Centre. This eliminates the need for patients to queue separately for their prescriptions at the main pharmacy.
This improved workflow resulted in shorter turnaround time for patients. Currently, 70% of patients with non-life threatening conditions seen at the A&E are able to leave the hospital within an hour. KTPH aims to increase this turnaround time to 90%.
Returning patients at the specialist outpatient clinics are given a journey chit upon registration to keep them informed of the various stations and services that they are required to go through such as X-ray, consultation and the pharmacy, on the day of their appointment.
To minimise patients’ movement around the hospital, clinics and associated health services are logically clustered. For instance, an orthopaedic patient can easily access X-ray services within the clinic rather than queuing again at the Radiology Lab. The rehabilitation centre is located next door for easy access. In the case of a diabetic patient, they can see their primary care doctor, a podiatrist and a dietitian without leaving the Diabetes Centre.
Employee productivity
To increase the productivity of doctors, nurses and patients, Advanced Practice Nurses (APNs) are deployed in clinics to take on some of the functions performed by doctors. This enables APNs to apply their advanced training and skills in a clinical setting, while freeing doctors to focus on more complicated cases. APNs working in KTPH’s Diabetes Centre are authorised to attend to patients requiring continuing care, and prescribe them certain medicines. This shortens the waiting time for patients and enables them to get medications without having to wait too long for an appointment with the doctor.
By equipping staff with better tools for the job through the use of high-tech equipment, and upgrading their skills through professional training courses, KTPH has increased the productivity level of its Environment Service Associates (ESAs). Unlike other healthcare service organisations, KTPH’s housekeeping services are not outsourced. Instead, the hospital’s ESAs are able to contribute at a value-added level through job redesign. Their role entails more than housekeeping; they are also responsible for infection control and keeping the hospital’s environment conducive for healing.
As health is one of the major factors influencing employee productivity, KTPH conducts programmes and activities to promote healthy living among staff. This also ensures that matured staff are able to maintain their health for employability in their senior years.
In fact, NTUC Foodfare, one of the social enterprises of NTUC, has partnered KTPH to set up a food court within the hospital premise. Sharing the same vision of promoting healthy living, NTUC Foodfare also introduces healthier alternatives in its food menu. Staff and customers who opt for the healthier food items also enjoy lower prices for the healthier selection. Beside healthier choices, it also has a public health corner within the food court for patrons to self-administer basic health checks, e .g. blood pressure, weight and height for BMI calculation.
Ms Diana Chia, General Secretary of Healthcare Services Employees’ Union said, “It is heartening to see the health service sector applying innovative approaches such as Kaizen and Lean Management to enhance its processes and services. By embracing the productivity drive of maximising valuable outputs and minimising wasteful inputs across the hospital, we are definitely on the right track to achieve the productivity growth set for Singapore.”
