title: Use of Lean response to improve pandemic influenza surge in public health laboratories.
abstract: A novel influenza A (H1N1) virus detected in April 2009 rapidly spread around the world. North American provincial and state laboratories have well-defined roles and responsibilities, including providing accurate, timely test results for patients and information for regional public health and other decision makers. We used the multidisciplinary response and rapid implementation of process changes based on Lean methods at the provincial public health laboratory in British Columbia, Canada, to improve laboratory surge capacity in the 2009 influenza pandemic. Observed and computer simulating evaluation results from rapid processes changes showed that use of Lean tools successfully expanded surge capacity, which enabled response to the 10-fold increase in testing demands.
authors.affiliation: Public Health Microbiology and Reference Laboratory, Provincial Health Services Authority, 655 West 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4R4, Canada. judy.isaac-renton@bccdc.ca
authors.forename: Judith L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Isaac-Renton
authors.forename: Yin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Prystajecky
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Petric
authors.forename: Annie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mak
authors.forename: Brendan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Abbott
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Paris
authors.forename: K C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Decker
authors.forename: Lauren
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pittenger
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Guercio
authors.forename: Jeff
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stott
authors.forename: Joseph D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D053118:Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D007753:Laboratories / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D058873:Pandemics; D011634:Public Health / Q000592:standards*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013997:Time Factors