Never before in the healthcare industry has there been such intense emphasis and open debate on the issue of quality. The steady rise in the cost of healthcare coupled with the need for quality have combined to put the healthcare industry at the top of the national agenda. Quality, costs, and service are not just socially provocative ideas. They are critical criteria for decision-making by patients, physicians, and many key constituents of healthcare organizations.
The pursuit of improved performance has driven a host of executives and managers in search of techniques for structuring, rehabilitating, redesigning, and reengineering the organizations they serve. Unfortunately, the narrow-mindedness with which programs are implemented and the discontinuity in their application weaken the promise of success. The process of quality improvement can become an undisciplined search for illusions rather than reality.
For many years, healthcare managers have embraced the narrow definition of performance solely in the context of financial success. Forward-thinking executives now realize that the road to financial success begins with success in quality and service. Quality and service are no longer separate issues – they are the same. Neither one by itself will bring about lasting success. The ultimate measure of performance is in an organization’s ability to create value for its customers, and true performance must be measured in the context of the customers’ total experience.
This book is about how to manage performance in the context of value to the customer or patient. It brings together the many pieces of the performance improvement puzzle – quality, technology, costs, productivity, and customer service. The author also covers process improvement tools including Lean and Six Sigma, and how to create a culture of continuous improvement as well as how to improve the patient experience and productivity improvement strategies. The book is filled with examples, illustrations, and tools for improving key aspects of a healthcare organization’s performance.
Dr. Vincent K. Omachonu is a Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Miami, and holds a secondary appointment as Professor in the Department of Health Sector & Policy at the University of Miami. He received his Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the New York University Polytechnic, New York. He has two masters degrees one in Operations Research from Columbia University, New York, and the other in Industrial Engineering from the University of Miami, Florida. His B.S. degree is also in Industrial Engineering from the University of Miami. Dr. Omachonu was one of the early contributors to the field of health care quality management. His seminal book titled Total Quality and Productivity Management in Health Care Organizations received the Institute of Industrial Engineers Joint Publishers Book-of-the-Year Award in 1993. Dr. Omachonu is a Master Black Belt in Lean Sigma.
Dr. Omachonu’s other books include, Principles of Total Quality (co- authored with J. Ross), Healthcare Performance Improvement, 1999. His most recent book is titled Access to Health Care and Patient Safety (co-authored with M. Taveras Ponce [2013]) His book titled Principles of Total Quality was translated into the Spanish language (Principios de Calidad Total) in 2014. Dr. Omachonu has published several papers in technical and professional journals and has given hundreds of seminars and presentations to professional and management groups all over the United States and South/Central America.
He has supervised the implementation of the quality management process in several service organizations. He has successfully conducted industrial engineering efficiency and customer flow studies. Dr. Omachonu has served as the evaluator for federal and State funded projects (SAMHSA, OMH, Department of Health, Ryan White, etc.) He has been featured twice on CNN Business. He has served on the Boards of a number of organizations including Interim Healthcare Services, Fort Lauderdale, Coral Gables Hospital, and Palmetto General Hospital, Miami. His clients include Humana, Leon Medical Centers, Miami, CAC Medical Centers, Miami, Peoples Health in New Orleans, Methodist Health System, Tennessee, Holy Cross Hospital, Fort Lauderdale, Baptist Health Systems, Florida, Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami, Miami Children’s Hospital, Miami, Memorial Hospital System, HCA and Tenet Hospitals. Other clients include Florida Power & Light as well as some Fortune 500 companies. He has conducted educational and training sessions for physicians all over the United States in the areas of Physician-Patient Communication, Improving the Patient Experience, and Improving the HCAPH scores.
Dr. Omachonu has facilitated several strategic planning initiatives and senior management retreats for major organizations. He has worked with several Black Belts in Lean Six Sigma. He has served as the Evaluator for all Primary Care projects funded by the Health Foundation of South Florida. He is a renowned speaker/trainer in the areas of Management, organizational development, process re-engineering, and methods improvement. He has published research papers in Health Services Research Journal, European Journal of Operational Research, and Journal of Healthcare Management Science.
Dr. Omachonu has been the recipient of University of Miami school-wide teaching awards and multiple awards for teaching excellence in the School of Business (MBA Health Care Sector) program. He is one of 100 world-wide recipients of the IBM 2012 Faculty Award for his work in the field of Health Care. He was recently named the recipient of the Alexander Orr Teacher of the Year Award for the College of Engineering (2013).
