Can lean reduce infections? A systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies
Background: Lean is largely applied to the health sector and on the healthcare-associated infections (HAI). The latter are a plague for our society. However, a few results on the improvement of the outcome have been reported in literature. The purpose of this study is to analyze if the lean application can reduce the healthcare-associated infections rate.
Methods: A comprehensive search was performed on PubMed/Medline, Scopus, CINAHL, Cochrane, Embase, and Google Scholar databases using various combinations of the following keywords: "lean" and "infection" from August to December 2019. Inclusion criteria were: 1) research articles with quantitative data and relevant information on lean methodology and its impact on healthcare infections; 2) prospective studies. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines has been used.
Results: 22 studies were included in the present meta-analysis. Lean application demonstrated a significant protective role on healthcare-associated infections rate (RR 0.50 [0.38-0.66]) with significant impact on central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) (RR 0.47 [0.28-0.82]). There was a significant correlation between lean application and healthcare worker satisfaction and compliance, but no significant decrease of mortality has been reported.
Conclusions: Lean has a positive impact on the decreasing of HAIs and on the improvement of compliance and satisfaction of the staff.
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Posted 28 May, 2020
Can lean reduce infections? A systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies
Posted 28 May, 2020
Background: Lean is largely applied to the health sector and on the healthcare-associated infections (HAI). The latter are a plague for our society. However, a few results on the improvement of the outcome have been reported in literature. The purpose of this study is to analyze if the lean application can reduce the healthcare-associated infections rate.
Methods: A comprehensive search was performed on PubMed/Medline, Scopus, CINAHL, Cochrane, Embase, and Google Scholar databases using various combinations of the following keywords: "lean" and "infection" from August to December 2019. Inclusion criteria were: 1) research articles with quantitative data and relevant information on lean methodology and its impact on healthcare infections; 2) prospective studies. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines has been used.
Results: 22 studies were included in the present meta-analysis. Lean application demonstrated a significant protective role on healthcare-associated infections rate (RR 0.50 [0.38-0.66]) with significant impact on central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) (RR 0.47 [0.28-0.82]). There was a significant correlation between lean application and healthcare worker satisfaction and compliance, but no significant decrease of mortality has been reported.
Conclusions: Lean has a positive impact on the decreasing of HAIs and on the improvement of compliance and satisfaction of the staff.
Figure 1
Figure 2