Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the scope of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) strategy and to explore its successful deployment in the Indian healthcare sector. Design/methodology/approach – The research reported in this paper is based on a case study carried out using the LSS DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Control) approach and its application in improving the registration process in the Health Information Department (HID) of a Medical College hospital in India. Findings – The study describes improvements in the HID through the power of LSS. Cycle time of the process was reduced from three to 1.5 minutes and the SD was reduced to 21.2 from 61 seconds. The project has shown a 94 per cent reduction in patients’ average waiting time. The study also reported a 91 per cent reduction in queue length and 48 per cent reduction in percentage of scheduled utilization of staff for the process. Research limitations/implications – The paper is based on a single case study executed in a hospital and hence there is limitation in generalizing the specific results from the study. But the approach adopted and the learning from this study can be generalized. The study is of use to healthcare practitioners seeking to implement or develop LSS further in their organizations. Originality/value – Although LSS being extremely successful in the last two decades, the application of LSS to the healthcare industry in general and HID in particular has been limited. This study illustrates how its application can improve the performance of the process and thus productivity in the department.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how Lean Six Sigma (LSS) methodology was applied to a medical records department (MRD) of a hospital in India to reduce the Turn-Around-Time (TAT) of medical records preparation process and thus to improve the productivity and performance of the department. Design/methodology/approach – The research reported in this paper is based on a case study carried out using LSS approach and in improving the medical records preparation process. Findings – The root causes for the problem were identified and validated through data-based analysis from LSS tool box, at different stages in the project. As a result of this project, the TAT was reduced from average 19 minutes to eight minutes and the standard deviation was reduced by one-tenth, which was a remarkable achievement for department under study. This was resulted in the reduction in the work-in-process inventory of medical records from 40 units to 0 at the end of the day. Project in-turn reduced the staffing level from the earlier level of six to a current level of four. Research limitations/implications – The paper is based on a single case study executed in IP-MRD of a single hospital and hence there is limitation in generalizing the specific results from the study. But the approach adopted and the learning from this study can be generalized. Originality/value – This paper will be helpful for those professionals who are interested in implementing LSS to healthcare organization to improve the productivity and performance.

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to illustrate how the Six Sigma methodology was applied to a small-scale foundry industry to reduce the rejections and rework in one of its processes. Design/methodology/approach – The research reported in this paper is based on a case study carried out in an industry using the Six Sigma Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control (DMAIC) approach and its application in improving the leaf spring manufacturing process of a foundry shop. Findings – The root causes for the problem of rejection and rework were identified through data-based analysis at different stages in the project. The process parameters were optimized and measures for sustainability of the results were incorporated in the process. As a result of this study, the overall rejection was reduced from 48.33 to 0.79 per cent, which was a remarkable achievement for this small-scale industry. This was leading to improvement in on-time delivery to the customer. The finance department of the company estimated the annualized savings due to the reduction in rejection and was to the tune of USD8,000 per year. Research limitations/implications – The paper is based on a single case study executed in a company, and hence, there is limitation in generalizing the specific results from the study. However, the approach adopted and the learning from this study can be generalized. Originality/value – This article illustrates the step-by-step application of Six Sigma DMAIC methodology in a small-scale foundry industry to solve an age-old problem in the organization. Thus, this article will be helpful for those professionals who are interested in implementing Six Sigma to such industries.

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