Tools

The following tools have appeared in Healthcare Update: Quality Tools and Applications, an expansion of ASQ’s Healthcare Update Newsletter. Each monthly edition focuses on a specific tool and includes a template, how-to method, or example from a healthcare setting.

Five Whys and Five Hows
The five whys and five hows offer a questioning process for clarifying problem statements and developing solutions. Asking “why” and “how” five times helps drill down to root causes and root solutions.

Applying 5S to Healthcare Service
Kaiser Permanente Colorado used Lean Six Sigma to evaluate and improve its Medicaid enrollment processes while increasing Medicaid revenue by more than $1 million annually. An innovative application of 5S helped the team develop a new enrollment template.

Employee Instruction Sheet (XLS, 1.66 MB)
Use this employee instruction sheet, submitted by Matthew Bommarito, to capture the components of process documentation on one comprehensive worksheet. The downloadable spreadsheet includes separate tabs with instructions, a template, and an example from Heartland Regional Medical Center, St. Joseph, MO.

The Purpose and Applications of Relations Diagrams
Relations diagrams can help you identify relationships in a complex or confusing problem situation.

SMART Matrix
A SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, resources, time) matrix is a communication and planning tool used to identify the specifics of actions or tasks.   

Download more tools and templates to help you collect and analyze quality data.

Have a tool to share? Submit your own template or example for ASQ’s Healthcare Update: Quality Tools and Applications. Read our guidelines and suggestions for submissions.