Collective Analysis of Work to Increase the Amount of Time Spent with Patients. A Case Study Looking at the Value of Activities Using the Lean Approach

For several years now, healthcare professionals have expressed their frustration at the increasing number of administrative and logistical tasks that take them away from patients’ bedsides, where their work is most meaningful. In March 2022, the French Senate published a report on the state of hospitals and the healthcare system in France. Faced with a “never-ending crisis” (Speech by Emmanuel Macron, presentation of the National Health Plan, 6 January 2023.) and a feeling of loss of purpose widely expressed by healthcare professionals, “we need to put patient care back at the heart of the hospital professions, which are too far removed from it because they do not have enough time to devote to it” (Commission of Inquiry Report No. 587 (2021–2022), Volume I, published on 29 March 2022.). Lean, a method of reorganising processes that focuses on customer-perceived value, would appear to be a promising solution to the situation described above. Based on the following research question: “How can collective analysis of work during lean healthcare implementation contribute to increase the amount of time spent with patients?”, we will explore ways of analysing the activities carried out by healthcare professionals in order to increase the amount of time devoted to care. Our research is based in the geriatric ward of a hospital group. For a number of years, this ward has faced major organisational difficulties that have led to occupational burnout. The results show the potential for refocusing healthcare activities and limiting non-value added tasks, based on an analysis of the tasks performed by professionals in the field.