Long-regarded as one of the best healthcare organizations in the world, the Mayo Clinic has not been exempt from the challenges facing the industry. While the Mayo Clinic had employed quality approaches to an extent throughout its history, at the start of the twenty-first century the organization's leaders drove a system-wide transformation using a unique quality model that combines aspects of continuous improvement, Toyota's total productive maintenance system, the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence, Six Sigma, and lean.
Recognizing that a successful transformation is rooted in the willingness, preparedness and knowledge of its employees, Mayo trained its workforce in quality tools and approaches and implemented the "Fair and Just Culture," making all team members equals in the effort to identify improvement opportunities.
Mayo's quality improvements have resulted in safer healthcare that is less expensive than the U.S. average. A byproduct of its efforts is a 5-to-1 return on investment.
Learning Objectives
• Demonstrate the efficacy of using quality as a strategic driver to the transformation of an organization
• Manage major change within an organization
• Utilize the various theories and approaches to design a quality system that will work with an organization's unique culture and structure.
• Understand the design of a continuous improvement system
• Explain the educational and training curricula and processes that enable all employees to participate in the transformation.
• Develop measurements and controls when there is organizational willingness to change and pursue strategic objectives.
Written Case Study:
Part I of the case study is the situation analysis and poses the challenges that the Mayo Clinic faced in their transformation efforts. Part II of the case study details some of the deployment activities that Mayo Clinic undertook in its journey to quality.
Video:
The voices of Mayo Clinic's quality transformation share how the organization created patient centered, reliable care across more than 70 locations.

Video Contents:
1. The first half is a presentation to the Masters of Engineering Management (MEM) Program and the McCormick School of Engineering of Northwestern University, led by key members of the Mayo quality team Dr. Stephen Swensen, M.D., M.M.M., Chief Medical Quality Officer and James Dilling, M.E., Chief Administrative Quality Officer. Approximately 35 minutes
2. The second half is a question and answer session with Swenson, Dilling and the student audience. Approximately 40 minutes
The video is available online from the American Society for Quality at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNTXk-2dXTc&list=UU2M3UlM_gu5NT2FT_SyUVPQ&index=1&feature=plcp
Required
1. Why would a world-renowned organization, Mayo Clinic, already known for quality embark on a quality improvement journey?
2. What were challenges facing Mayo and the role of leadership?
3. All organizations have a culture. Why is it important to align the organization's culture with its larger goals?
4. What was the role of standardization in improving quality?
5. What purpose does the Quality Academy at the Mayo Clinic serve? Who should participate in the Academy and how should they encourage or require participation?
6. How should quality improvement be measured and knowledge disseminated?