Integrating Health Services Engineering: A Multidimensional Approach
During the past two decades in health care, increasing numbers of preventable hospital deaths and medical errors, an explosion of technologies, pharmaceuticals, and diagnostic and therapeutic techniques, and rising costs have resulted in a shift in focus
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Abstract During the past two decades in health care, increasing numbers of preventable hospital deaths and medical errors, an explosion of technologies, pharmaceuticals, and diagnostic and therapeutic techniques, and rising costs have resulted in a shift in focus away from “one doctor, one patient” to the systems and processes that support care delivery. While leaders in health care have begun to recognize the contribution of engineering tools and principles in improving health care safety and quality, integration of these techniques and the engagement of engineers has not been fully realized. Creating an infrastructure that promotes a collaborative foundation begins in the academic setting. This article describes a three-pronged approach to integration that will ultimately improve results, efficiency, efficacy, and clinical and operational outcomes in health care facilities. Keywords Healthcare engineering
Health systems engineering
1 Introduction Health care delivery in the United States has traditionally focused on “one patient, one doctor” in determining methodologies and strategies to support health maintenance, disease prevention, and clinical intervention. While this relationship continues to be critical, over the past two decades there has there been a shift in focus to the systems and processes that enable the delivery of high quality care and services. Several factors have contributed to this: Evidence of significant numbers of preventable deaths and errors in hospitals and the need to improve safety, less than satisfactory outcomes in several health categories when compared to other nations, and the highest per capita health care expenditure of any country [1]. These findings, in combination with an explosion of technologies, pharmaceuticals, and
C.H. Brown (&) Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, San Jose, CA, USA e-mail: [email protected] © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2017 T.Z. Ahram and W. Karwowski (eds.), Advances in The Human Side of Service Engineering, Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing 494, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-41947-3_8
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diagnostic and therapeutic techniques, has created greater jeopardy and an imperative for change. In 2014, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology submitted the report “Better Health Care and Lower Costs: Accelerating Improvement Through Systems Engineering” [2] to the Executive Office of the President of the United States. Six goals are identified which promote integration of engineering and health systems to improve quality and access and reduce costs: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Accelerate alignment of payment systems with desired outcomes, Increase access to relevant health data and analytics, Provide technical assistance in systems engineering approaches, Involve communities in improving health care delivery, Share lessons learned from successful improvement efforts, Train health professionals in new skills and approaches.
Application of engineering design and analytical principles can facilitate impr
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