HQC assumes responsibility for Provincial Kaizen Promotion Office (PKPO)

On April 1 the Health Quality Council will begin coordinating and advancing use of Lean methodology across the province’s health care system. The Council is assuming responsibility for the Provincial Kaizen Promotion Office (PKPO) at the request of the Ministry of Health. Kaizen is a Japanese word that means continuous, incremental improvement.

Through the Saskatchewan Health Care Management System, the province is applying Lean principles and methods to ensure care is patient and family centred and free of defects, with no waiting.

As part of this new function, HQC staff will work closely with their counterparts in Kaizen Promotion Offices in the health regions, Health Ministry, and other health organizations. The Provincial Kaizen Promotion Office will:

•    Coordinate a schedule of Lean improvement initiatives across the province;
•    Report on the impact of improvement activity;
•    Coordinate and provide the training of health care managers and providers in Lean methodology; and,
•    Spread the improvements achieved in one area to other similar settings.

“This new work aligns brilliantly with HQC’s overall mandate to measure and report on the quality of health care and to promote and support improvement throughout the system,” says the Council’s CEO Bonnie Brossart. “We are delighted to have this opportunity to play such a pivotal role in our health system’s ongoing transformation efforts.”