NURUL FATMA DIYANA AHMAD

2019-48807
Learned Reflection: Benchmarking

Benchmarking is a systematic, data-driven process of continuous improvement

that involves internally and/or externally comparing performance to identify, achieve and
sustain best practice. “The Formula 1 and its Contribution to Healthcare” lecture by
Professor Martin Elliot has considered the parallels between Formula 1 activities and
healthcare industries. Professor Martin described the lesson learned from Formula 1 and
consider how healthcare industries might benefit from how they work and their
technologies.

The first domain that was being discussed in the lecture for benchmarking Formula
1 to healthcare is teamwork. A team working together to produce a service should have
a shared goal and are interdependent in its accomplishment. In the present working
climate, we have to accept necessary changes not only should we accept changes as
they take place, but should also be constantly reviewing working practice and being
proactive in implementing changes as and when necessary.

There are several safety and performance themes that were embedded in Formula
1 culture, which we in healthcare, had to adapt. These were leadership, task sequence,
task allocation, predicting and planning, discipline and composure, checklist,
involvement, briefing, situation awareness, training, and de-briefing and review meetings.
With the development of clear structure, and a choreographed standard operating
procedure which were repeatedly rehearsed, will be able to reduce technical and
information errors and eventually will demonstrate improvement in teamwork.

Good communications and discipline are very important to make a team work more
efficient. Mutual respects, trusts and understanding are essential to achieve common
goal. When people learn to appreciate and support each other’s effort, they are highly
motivated and inspired to improve work efficiency.
 The second domain that was discussed was safety. It is very important to have a
total, systemic, commitment to safety. And this commitment has been replicated in
several industries, including railroads, nuclear and airlines which make them high
reliability organisations. The commitment of safety by Formula 1 has resulted in a huge
and successful push to make Formula 1 safer today and has contributed to road safety
with reduce fatalities, and the frequency and severity of injury.

Improving the culture of safety within healthcare is an essential component to

prevent and reduce errors and improve overall healthcare quality. The commitment
toward safety should encompasses acknowledgement of the high-risk nature of the
activities in the organisation and the determination to achieve consistently safe
operations. It should also feature a blame-free environment where individuals are able to
reports errors without fear of punishment, encouragement of collaboration across teams
and members to find solutions, and commitment by the organisation of resources to
address safety concerns.

The next domain that was discussed was the collection and analysis of large
amounts of data. The formula 1 teams accumulate masses of data not only to monitor
performance but also to predict when problems might occur. As healthcare organisations
starting to develop more sophisticated big data analytics capabilities, healthcare should
also begin to move from basic descriptive analytics toward the realm of predictive insights.
Instead of simply presenting information about past events, predictive analytics estimate
the likelihood of a future outcome based on patterns in the historical data. This will allows
us to receive alerts about potential events before they happen, and therefore make more
informed choices about how to proceed with a decision.

The data that are collected in Formula 1 not only provide predictive analytics for
strategy and tactics, but also feed a system of rapid development, prototyping and
application that is the envy of those of us who work in healthcare. The processes of
designing and redesigning of Formula 1 components based on the data obtained are
effectively continuous. This rapid turnaround of ideas create multiple small improvements
in performance.
 The final domain that was discussed is that of logistics. In Formula 1, tons on
equipment including spares and tools, and all the supporting people around the world
need to be move by the team at least every two weeks during season. Everything and
everyone must arrive safely, and its hard to imagine a team ever being late and the race
always starts on time. In healthcare, getting operating lists and clinics to start on time
remains a challenge.

The ultimate goals of benchmarking are to identify improvement opportunities and

attain excellence. The effort should go beyond replicating the best practice of other
organisations to embedding those practices into the culture of the organisation so that
they become part of day-to-day operations (JCI, 2012). In healthcare benchmarking, an
institution identified the specific clinical practices and organisational features applied by
another institution with excellent performance for a given outcome. Then, the teams
should be able to implement the identified practices and to modify their organisations in
ways that lead to better outcomes (Thonon F et al, 2015).

There are two primary types of benchmarking: internal and external. The practice
of internal benchmarking consists of comparing benchmarks or similar processes within
different areas of an organisation at one point in time over a period of time. External
benchmarking compares performance targets or benchmarks for one or more other
organisations. It can be performed at various level (locally, nationally, or internationally)
(JCI, 2012).

There are two foundation of benchmarking, first, the information surveillance which
facilitates and accelerates the benchmarking process, and second, learning, sharing
information and adopting best practices to modify performance. Benchmarking
encompasses regular comparison of indicators against best practitioners, identify
differences in outcomes, seek out new approaches in order to make improvements and
monitoring indicators. (Amina ET et al, 2012). Like all continuous improvement methods,
benchmarking fits within the conceptual framework of Deming’s wheel of quality.
 There are five phase of benchmarking process model as described b y Wah Fong
S. The first phase, the planning phase includes identifying what is to be benchmarked
and the best performers for comparison together with data collection methods. In Analysis
Phase, current performance gap will be determined and future performance levels will be
projected. The is the Integration Phase where all the findings and gain acceptance
communicated and functional goals established. In Action Phase, action plans developed
and implemented, progress monitored and benchmark will be recalibrated. The last
phase, Maturity Phase, analysis whether practices fully integrated into processes and
attainment of leadership position will be assessed (Wah Fong S et al, 1998).

Benchmarking key characteristic is that it is part of a comprehensive and

participative policy of continuous quality improvement. Indeed, benchmarking is based on
voluntary and active collaboration among several organizations to create a spirit of
competition and to apply best practices (Amina ET et al, 2012). A benchmark team should
acquire knowledge before it starts to work on it. The important component of quality
improvement is a dynamic process that often employs more than one quality improvement
tools.
References:

1. Joint Commission Internationals. Benchmarking in Healthcare. Second Edition.

Department of Publication and Education, Joint Commission Resources, USA.
2012.
2. Ronda G. H. Chapter 44. Tools and Strategies for Quality Improvement and
Patient Safety. Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for
Nurses: Vol. 3. 3-1-22. N.A.
3. Amina ET, Levie M, Michel P. Benchmarking: A Method for Continuous Quality
Improvement in Health. Healthcare Policy Vol.7 No.4. France. 2012.
4. Sik Wah Fong Eddie W.L. Cheng Danny C.K. Ho, (1998),"Benchmarking: a
general reading for management practitioners", Management Decision, Vol. 36
Iss 6 pp. 407 – 418.