The digital transformation in healthcare has brought new methods for agile and efficient management such as Lean Healthcare, Kanban, Scrum.
There are some main foundations of agile methodologies, such as dynamic mindset, constant adaptations, improved efficiency, and greater flexibility in work processes.
Moreover, when delivering intelligent results, they offer more freedom to employees, who find themselves immersed in a culture of learning.
Agile methodologies in healthcare are great to optimize the processes of clinics and medical offices, to increase the company’s productivity.
In this article, you will see how you can bring Scrum development to the healthcare system.
Healthcare: Keeping Agile Alive and Kicking
Healthcare organizations are increasingly embracing new and innovative technologies such as web-based applications. Internet and online software applications can help improve patient care and increase business efficiency.
But application development for the healthcare industry can be challenging, if not impossible when using traditional methodologies.
Some projects you assign to just one person can take months to complete. Additionally, siled operations can prevent privacy and data security experts from sharing expert knowledge.
There is a need for Scrum in the healthcare industry to help drive changes. It will support clinical decision-making within highly effective patient care and business stewardship. All of this exists while also continuing to comply with the ever-changing requirements of regulatory agencies.
What are agile methodologies in healthcare?
Agile methodologies in healthcare are sets of processes and practices that provide more agility and productivity for offices and their teams.
They will provide a more organized management, and you will have more time to provide humanized care for your patients.
Agile methodologies are based on four main pillars:
- Communication: good communication with your team is the most important part of any methodology;
- Practicality: you need to have tools that provide practicality in your daily life;
- Alignment of expectations: don’t put unattainable goals in your office’s strategic planning;
- Adaptability and flexibility: If your original plan is not consistent with current reality, it’s time to adapt your strategies and respond to changes.
The main change that the methodologies cause in the offices are the previously operational actions, focused on numbers and profitability, now have the customer at the center.
Today, all attention is focused on the customer experience — including in the area of health and well-being. What other segment, by the way, is more related to the human side than this one?
Agile methodologies in Health systems
To be able to perform all of them with excellence, you need to have a management tool, such as medical software, and to adopt at least an agile methodology in your office.
1. Scrum
Scrum is probably the most used agile method by all companies because it can be integrated with other methodologies, and it works for any market segment.
Its main focus is the management of a project, be it a product or service.
To use it, you must list all the goals you seek to achieve, such as the implementation of automatic features in your office.
When using Scrum, you will notice that your planning will be much more practical, because each employee will have a defined responsibility, and a deadline to be followed. Use GitScrum’s Task Custom Fields and monitor every customizable task for each health employee.
In addition, you can also adapt throughout the process if you notice that deadlines aren’t working, or an unforeseen event occurred during the project.
2. Kanban
Kanban is composed of checklists (list of tasks to be completed) and boards (charts), tools that provide an excellent view of the progress of a project.
To use it, you need to create a Board and use a tool like GitScrum, that helps you organize your workflow and present your tasks in order, and break it down into three steps:
To do: activities that have not been started;
Doing: activities that are being performed;
Done: activities completed.
You can customize your frame, such as leaving the terms in Portuguese, creating new steps, such as “impediment”, signaling that some processes cannot be continued for a certain reason, among others.
3. SMART
The SMART methodology is used to set realistic goals and objectives during strategic planning. It is developed from five principles:
- Specific: Your goals need to be specific, and leave no room for personal interpretation. For example, if your main objective is to retain patients, a specific goal is to send congratulatory emails to the birthday patients;
- Measurable: Your goals must be measurable, that is, you need to measure the results of your strategies, using solid data;
- Attainable: they also need to be reachable, and follow the reality of your office, as well as your team;
- Relevant: Goals must also be relevant to your business success, otherwise they might just be distractions;
- Time-related: You must also stick to your project deadlines so that your team works with focus and maintains productivity.
Steps to apply agile methodologies in health
There are a few steps you can follow to implement the best practices when we talk about agile methodologies:
1. Choose an agile methodology
Implement your chosen methodologies in all areas of your practice, and don’t forget to educate your staff about the benefits of an agile culture.
Depending on the agile methodology you choose, your collaborators will have to use new tools, and it is essential to take into account the adaptation time for their learning.
2. Have a clear communication
Communication is a key point when using agile methods and must occur in a simple, direct, and effective way at all levels of the organization.
Work with transparency and make sure everyone is aware of expected practices, plans, projects, meetings, and assessments.
3. Create constant values
Perfection doesn’t exist but strives for consistency when implementing agile methodologies in your practice. Every change requires planning and adaptations.
To establish a process that makes sense, and if new needs arise, reassess the steps.
4. Process your health documents
If you are using a method for a healthcare project, there is probably a quality management system in place.
If you do not have medical management software, it is essential to consider adopting one, as it is an essential ally for your agile culture.
After all, good software allows you to register all your patients in one place. You can have have a more complete history, track all your financial transactions, and make processes automatic.
It is necessary to make sure about the documentation of processes and procedures, as well as following the standards defined by the management system.
5. Be patient
Finally, work patiently, especially in the transition process. It’s no use rushing teams and ignoring stages.
The idea is to recognize what works best for your practice and try to adapt to what needs adjustment. It’s a change that can take months or even years.
Agile methodologies serve as a support for any company that wants to embrace digital transformation. It is a change that you shouldn’t impose but propose to the entire team.
GitScrum supports your team to better results and effective deliveries!
Set your workflow and board to guide your Agile team, assign Tasks, Subtasks and keep in charge of the whole process evolvements. Allow your Agile team to collaborate.