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What it Takes to Bring Lean Thinking to Healthcare: One Leader’s Candid Reflections

By Keith Murphy

June 18, 2015

Keith Murphy, a Senior Lean Process Improvement Leader in a healthcare organization, shares his greatest lessons learned with regard to leadership and coaching. Learn why Murphy, who works closely with staff and physicians both, believes in strong learning relationships over shiny tools.

At the 2015 Lean Transformation Summit, we had a chance to speak with Keith Murphy, a senior lean process improvement leader in a large healthcare organization. Watch the video below to hear his greatest challenges and lessons learned and why he believes strong learning relationships among coaches and all staff members are core to any lean culture taking root and actually making a difference.

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Keith Murphy

About Keith Murphy

Keith Murphy has 15+ years of healthcare experience, working in both hospital and ambulatory care settings. He spent the last 3 1/2 years at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates as a Senior Lean Process Improvement Leader. Since starting their Lean transformation in 2008, HVMA has generated over 70 million dollars of improvement by utilizing classic Lean tools such as: Value Streams, Kaizen Events, Managing for Daily Improvement (MDI) Boards and Strategy Deployment. Keith’s primary focus areas are organizational Strategy Deployment (Hoshin-Kanri) processes, Daily Lean Management System development, and leadership coaching.

Prior to joining HVMA in 2011, Keith help to create and then oversaw the Patient Experience Program at Women & Infants Hospital in Providence, RI. The program was responsible for the hospital’s Patient & Family Centered Care program, Patient & Family Advisory Councils, and patient satisfaction surveys. In his early years at Women & Infants,, Keith worked in the hospital’s Organizational Development & Learning (OD&L) Department as a Senior Employee Development Specialist. In this role Keith facilitated team-building activities, managed various organizational improvement initiatives, and facilitated leadership and staff development courses.