Project News

From 19-24 June 2023, the first KAIZEN training for hospital staff was held in Gweru, Midlands Province. A total of 38 staff from 12 hospitals actively participated in the training. Through the training, they acquired valuable knowledge on key elements for implementing KAIZEN activities, such as positive attitude and mind-set and how to utilize QC Story ^{(Note 1)}.

Group work on QC Story

Outline of the Training

The training was conducted in a combination of classroom lectures, practical sessions, and discussions, with the aim of enabling participants to practice 5S activities and QC story after the training. The main topics of the training are listed below. In addition, an observation visit to Gweru Provincial Hospital was also carried out to provide more practical training to the participants. In the visit, they observed how 5S-KAIZEN activities were applied and implemented in the workplace and also practiced Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) activities with the standardized M&E tools.

Major items of instruction

• Current situation of health services in Zimbabwe
• Constructive discussion on challenges in actual implementation of 5S-KAIZEN in Zimbabwe
• Positive mindset for quality improvement
• Basic concepts of quality and patient safety in hospitals
• Basic concepts of the 5S-KAIZEN-TQM approach
• Leadership and teamwork
• Organizational structure for quality management
• Roles and responsibilities of top management
• PDCA of quality management
• Outline of 5S
• Outline of KAIZEN
• QC story (Step1- Step7)
• M&E of 5S-KAIZEN-TQM activities and its tools
• Hospital visit (observation of 5S-KAIZEN activities on site and M&E exercise)
• Development of an action plan

Participants practicing the Team Exercise: Paper Chain

Participant presenting the results of group work on QC story

Mr. Miyamoto, Japanese Expert, explaining M&E for the 5S-KAIZEN-TQM approach

Observation visit to Gweru Provincial Hospital (Private Ward)

Observation visit to Gweru Provincial Hospital (Central Sterilization Service Unit)

Participant presenting the results of the observation visit

Contribution of Zimbabwean facilitators such as ex-participants of training program in Japan

The training facilitators were appointed from the Quality Assurance and Patient Safety (QAPS) Directorate of the Ministry of Health and Child Care(MoHCC), ex-participants of training program in Japan, and hospital staff with extensive experience in practicing and teaching 5S-KAIZEN-TQM approach.

They actively provided lectures and practical sessions based on their own practices and past experiences in their respective facilities. Furthermore, during the lectures and practical sessions, the facilitators made efforts to ensure that the participants understood the significance and importance of implementing the 5S-KAIZEN-TQM approach in Zimbabwean hospitals.

Nursing teacher of Gweru Provincial Hospital, ex-participant of the training in Japan, lecturing on teamwork

Medical Superintendent of Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital, giving a lecture on 5S activities

Quality Improvement Officer of QAPS Directorate, ex-participant of the training in Japan, advising participants in a group work on QC story

Medical Superintendent of Victoria Chitepo Provincial Hospital, ex-participant of the training in Japan, lecturing on QC story

Training outcomes and evaluation

In this training program, participants who participated in the entire training program received an 'Attendance Certificate' and those who scored 70 points or above out of 100 in the post-test successfully received a 'Competency Certificate'. As a result of the training, all 38 participants received an Attendance Certificate and 36 of them received a Competency Certificate.

Comparing the results of the pre- and post-test, the average score improved after the training (from 64.5 points to 84.7 points), indicating that the training had improved the participants' knowledge.

In addition, an evaluation of the training program by the participants on the final day showed that 67% of the respondents ^{(Note 2)} were 'very satisfied' and 33% 'satisfied' with the training, indicating that the training was highly satisfactory.

Mr. Miyamoto, Japanese Expert, sharing way forward

Handing out of attendance certificate（from left to right: a participant, Director of QAPS Directorate, Japanese Expert）

Based on the lessons learnt from the training, the participants have started developing an action plan of 5S-KAIZEN activities to be undertaken by the quality improvement departments in their respective hospitals. The project will monitor the finalization of the action plan and its implementation to ensure to activate and consolidate quality improvement activities in the target hospitals.

Group photo of the participants