Virginia Mason Medical Center Case Solution And Analysis, HBR Case Study Solution & Analysis of Harvard Case Studies

Virginia Mason Medical Center Case Solution

Question 3

How does the Toyota Production System fit into his strategy?

As already mentioned: Toyota shared the same vision as VMMC did, and they also put customers as their first priorities, provided the quality and ensured safety and also emphasized highly on satisfying their employees. So both the firms shared the same goals and their visions were same, due to which Dr. Kaplan decided to implement the TPS system to manage the hospital’s staff, cost, quality and operation. TPS system was also based on reducing the waste in the operational chain in order to reduce the cost and increase the quality. TPS was focused on standard work and JIT production system to maintain the cost and work quality, respectively. The increasing reputation was also the proof of the efficiency which TPS system had, and this convinced Dr. Kaplan to implement this system.

Question 4

Delineate TPS clearly and explain how it can be implemented at Virginia Mason.

TPS system grew after world war-II when there was a need of cost cutting approach in the failed economies. Toyota was facing the worst situations when it opted the TPS systems to manage the cost, customers and employees. To reduce the cost, it was important to identify the loop holes that created waste. TPS system consists of two systems: one is Just in time and other is Jidoka which was to reduce the abnormalities in the production system. Now these systems were for the same purpose that hospital also had. So, Dr. Kaplan managed to implement the Just in time and Jidoka to improve the quality and to reduce the waste and cost incurrence in the hospital. First Kaplan had the aim to opt for no layoff policy in order to increase the sense of security among the employees. To increase the improvement; Kaplan opted for value-stream mapping, which allows to make the flow of the information.Organization’s physical space was efficiently utilized and the production process was also updated to its best and efficient level. For employees; there was everyday lean system in which all the employees were encouraged to do their regular job with more creativity and efficiency. The patient safety and alert system was also updated through pull the cord system in order to reach all the employees and provide the patients with same and accurate information. Kaplan also provided the employees with an opportunity to participate in the literature and publications. The new implementation system provided positive outcomes to the company.

Question 5

What is your view of the “people are not cars” debate?

Yes we agree that people are not cars and we also respect the view that every patient is unique and needs special treatment because their diseases and treatment differ from one other. But along with that, the change is not easy. People first look at the negative side of the change before looking at the positive side of change, but that positive aspects are achieved through new system models. People expect that change to take place immediately but as it is a fact that change will take time and things will take time to take place and achieve the desired outcomes. The new implementation strategies take time to provide the benefits. So the main focus of Dr. Kaplan was on tangible advantages that could be achieved from the TPS system. The TPS system will allow hospital to reduce the waste in the hospital and to increase its profitability and positive outcomes.

Question 6

Explain when the two have commonalities and differences as it pertains to the implementation of the TPS.

Despite of differences and commonalities; Dr. Kaplan decided to implement the TPS system, as this system seemed more convincing to Kaplan to be implemented because there was a dire need of implementing the new system for solving the troublesome situation. An increased competition in the industry made Kaplan more proactive and he decided to implement the standard work and just in time approach in order to maintain different aspects of the hospital. Despite of the differences; the new system generated positive results after one year of it being implemented in the hospital.

Question 7

What are the difficulties of implementing TPS at a healthcare organization in general?

The TPS system is transferable to the US hospital settings.The first challenge which the implementation process could face is the challenge of redesigning the treatment for physical treatment. The other challenges which the hospital could face are behavioral challenge from the employees and staff in response to the change. Change management is also important part of the implementation process, because employees and staff are comfortable in their state and change could make them uncomfortable and they can resist any participation. As this system was for a car manufacturing company, so it was a bit tricky for Dr. Kaplan to implement it according to the human beings’ aspects. During the implementation; Dr. Kaplan should focus on the human nature of the employees and staff. Another challenge could be the reliable communication flow to all over the hospital.

Conclusion

VMMC was a non-profit organization as it was a collective visionof two doctors, their aim was to provide both quality and services. Dr. Gary Kaplan was appointed as the CEO of VMMC in 2000, and when he joined the hospital as CEO; the hospital was facing severe losses and a massive financial distress, in addition to which its staff’s morale had also decreased.Dr. Kaplan suggested to implement the TPS system in order to maintain the quality which the patients expected and to improve the satisfaction level of employees and also to decrease waste in order to increase the profitability of the hospital and to sustain the competition in the industry. After one year of implementation; Dr. Kaplan witnessed significant positive outcomes in the hospital............................

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Virginia Mason Medical Center Harvard Case Solution & Analysis