Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40901379›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in health services2025

The contribution of a person-centred model of Lean Six Sigma to the development of a healthful culture of health systems improvement.

Seán Paul Teeling, Deborah Baldie, Ailish Daly, Anne Marie Keown, Aileen Igoe, Ciara Dowling, Martin McNamara

Abstract read
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Article in Frontiers in health services, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Seán Paul TeelingUCD Centre for Interdisciplinary Research, Education & Innovation in Health Systems, School of Nursing, Midwifery & Health Systems, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
Deborah BaldieCentre for Person-Centred Practice Research Division of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Queen Margaret University Drive, Queen Margaret University, Musselburgh, United Kingdom.
Ailish DalyPatient Safety, Quality & Innovation, Beacon Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
Anne Marie KeownMater Transformation, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
Aileen IgoeMater Transformation, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
Ciara DowlingNursing Department, Incorporated Orthopaedic Hospital of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland.
Martin McNamaraUCD Centre for Interdisciplinary Research, Education & Innovation in Health Systems, School of Nursing, Midwifery & Health Systems, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: A failure to distinguish between person-centredness, person-centred care, and person-centred cultures can result in improvement initiatives focusing solely on improvement initiative metrics and outcomes, excluding the authentic experiences of patients and staff. Building on the foundational work of Dewing and McCormack, we have designed, piloted, and implemented the Person-centred Lean Six Sigma (PCLSS) model in public and private acute and community healthcare settings across Ireland. This model uses Lean Six Sigma, a widely adopted improvement methodology, through a person-centred lens with which improvement practitioners and healthcare staff can inspect their Lean Six Sigma practice and critically evaluate whether, to what extent, and how it is synergistic with person-centred approaches. Aim: This paper explores the deployment of the PCLSS model across four clinical study sites and examines its alignment with McCance and McCormack's conceptual work on healthful cultures, evaluating its contribution to creating cultures that support sustainable improvement, compassion, and respect. Methods: The PCLSS model was embedded within a university-accredited education programme for healthcare staff. The model was applied across four distinct healthcare settings in Ireland: a public acute teaching hospital, a private full-service acute hospital, an integrated ophthalmology service bridging hospital and community care, and a public rehabilitation hospital. A case study methodology was used to examine implementation and impact. Results: Across all four sites, the PCLSS model facilitated improvements in operational efficiency, staff and patient engagement, interprofessional collaboration, and reflective practice. The model supported leadership at all levels, fostered sustainable change, and successfully mapped onto key domains associated with healthful cultures, as articulated in the work of McCance and McCormack. Conclusion: The PCLSS model represents a sustainable, values-based approach to improvement that aligns operational excellence with person-centred principles. Its application contributes meaningfully to the development of healthful cultures in healthcare organisations.

Indexed as

healthcare improvementhealthful culturesLean Six Sigmaperson-centred carereflective practicestaff empowermentsustainable changesystems thinking

Identifiers

PMID40901379
PMCPMC12400856

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.