Using the Lean Process to Achieve Skin‐to‐Skin after Cesarean Births

Poster PresentationPurpose for the ProgramTo use Lean improvement methods to improve a clinical process: facilitating skin‐to‐skin contact between the mother and newborn after cesarean birth.Proposed ChangeThe goal of this project was to establish a process to facilitate keeping the mother and newborn together and provide skin‐to‐skin contact in the operating room or recovery room after cesarean birth. Previously, we separated the mother and newborn and moved the newborn to the nursery for assessment while the mother remained in the birth center, which delayed skin‐to‐skin contact.Implementation, Outcomes, and EvaluationLean improvement project team members included process engineers, nurses, managers and director. Lean methods used included spaghetti mapping, Gemba walks, and identification of process waste. Following a plan, do, check, act (PDCA) trial, the team identified the following issues: resistance from anesthesiologists,; confusion regarding communication paths, and a need for educational tools to clarify the process and contraindications. Anesthesiologists were provided with published evidence and the opportunity to discuss their concerns with physician colleagues at another hospital who were already providing skin‐to‐skin contact in the operating room. Posters outlining the communication paths and process changes for each area were provided. The team determined criteria for contraindicating participation in skin‐to‐skin contact and designed pro...
Source: Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing - Category: Nursing Authors: Tags: Childbearing Source Type: research