US Senate Candidate Paul Akers Asserts, “Lean Works”; Touts Success of Lean Thinking in Health Care

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Seattle Children's Hospital is a great example of how lean transforms health care by continuously improving the process and eliminating waste.

Bellingham, WA (PRWEB) August 6, 2010

US Senate candidate Paul Akers touts “lean” business principles as the way to reduce health care costs and increase quality and access. A recent New York Times article confirmed the success of lean principles in Seattle Children's Hospital.

Using lean principles Seattle Children's Hospital achieved these results:
Cut costs by 3.7 percent per patient for a total of $23 million saved.
Avoided spending $180 million on capital projects by using existing facilities more efficiently.
Served 38,000 patients last year, up from 27,000 in 2004 without expanding or adding beds.

Akers stated, “Our health care system is riddled with waste, driving costs up and reducing access to care. Seattle Children's Hospital is a great example of how lean transforms health care by continuously improving the process and eliminating waste. Lean works.”

“It turns out the highest-quality care also is the most cost-effective because we make fewer mistakes and create better outcomes,” said Patrick Hagan, president of Seattle Children's Hospital, in the New York Times.

Akers also notes the success of ThedaCare in Wisconsin, which cut costs by 30-40% and eliminated prescription errors for three straight years. In Washington, GroupHealth is driving health care costs down and improving quality through lean principles as well.

Akers' economic recovery plan, 10-3-Lean, would implement lean in every federal agency.

“Lean will work in the federal government if we elect authentic, proven leaders who understand these principles of success and have the vision to make them happen.”

Go to http://www.akersforussenate.com for more information.

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