Lean in the Hospital? 

In case you missed it, Friday’s Wall Street Journal (fee required) had a front-page article on applying Lean to Hospitals.  It flowed from a frustration by Pittsburgh-area companies at the rapid rise in health care costs.   

The essence of the article resonated with me in controlling costs that originate outside of our own companies.  Nothing seems quite so distant and non-controllable as health care.  So many layers exist between the payee (a corporate health care program), the user (the employee) and the price setter (the hospital/physician).  So many conflicts of interest exist.  Can a waste-free system exist? It seems impossible.  It was encouraging to read of the effort. 

I hope this is helpful