Bubble Wrap Delivers Better Night’s Sleep
- Mailing sleep therapy equipment directly to patients instead of leaving packages for them to pick up at their nearest medical office building
- Centralizing supply distribution and eliminating the use of in-house couriers for greater efficiency
- Purchasing software that enables tracking of deliveries for improved cost savings
What can your team do to put the patients' needs at the center when you try to improve performance?
The sleep lab in Falls Church, Virginia, draws patients from miles around. To save patients a trip, staff arranged for members to pick up and drop off sleep therapy equipment at their nearest medical office building. But patients sometimes were slow to pick up supplies, which caused storage problems. At other times, supplies were incorrect, late or missing — frustrating patients and staff. After completing a Plan-Do-Study-Act project, the team bought bubble wrap envelopes and began mailing equipment and supplies to patients. Staff also centralized supply distribution and purchased technology to track deliveries. Now patients are happier — and sleeping better at night.
A sleep therapy team reduced complaints about missing and incorrect supplies by mailing equipment directly to patients, centralizing its supply distribution, and purchasing software to track deliveries.
The Falls Church Sleep Medicine team used small tests of change to increase member satisfaction, and enhance service, access, and affordability.
of patients surveyed prefer mail delivery for sleep therapy equipment