Use of Lean Response to Improve Pandemic Influenza Surge in Public Health Laboratories

• Main Authors: Judith L. Isaac-Renton, Yin Chang, Natalie Prystajecky, Martin Petric, Annie Mak, Brendan Abbott, Benjamin Paris, K.C. Decker, Lauren Pittenger, Steven Guercio, Jeff Stott, Joseph D. Miller
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2012-01-01
• Series: Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Subjects: Pandemic; influenza; viruses; Lean response; public health laboratory; surge capacity
• Online Access: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/18/1/10-1485_article
• ISSN: 1080-6040; 1080-6059

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.