Awards for Operational Excellence

2011 UHC Supply Chain Performance Excellence Award | September 2011

Denver Health, the top performer among participating public hospitals, was presented with 2011 UHC award by Jake Groenewold, UHC's senior vice president, Supply Chain, at the National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems Fall Conference in Washington, DC. The hospital was recognized for excelling in the following five areas: excel in 5 areas: Physician alignment and stewardship; Evidence-based evaluations; Innovative supply chain approaches; Focus on distribution and utilization processes; and Long-term commitment to continuous improvement. The hospital credits their LEAN practices for their success in improving Denver Health's supply chain and receiving this award.

2011 Shingo Bronze Medallion | April 2011

Denver Health received a 2011 Shingo Award and was the first healthcare organization to be awarded The Shingo Bronze Medallion for Operational Excellence. As part of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, the mission of The Shingo Prize is to create excellence in organizations through the application of universally accepted principles of operational excellence and to empower people and transform organizational culture. "The award recipients have proven themselves as leaders in operational excellence and have challenged traditional paradigms to face competitive challenges in today’s global economy," Bob Miller, The Shingo Prize Executive Director.

LEAN Academy Testimonials

• "Thank you for a great visit last week! Our staff was inspired and I am excited to see how Lean will help the Michael E. DeBakey VAMC and the Veterans of Texas."
  -Mark Penner, Systems Redesign Coordinator at Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center
• "The most educational and empowering non-clinical activity of residency thus far!"
  -Dr. Tim Olsen, medical resident
• "I can't believe we got all of this done in one week!"
  -Dr. O'Connor, clinic provider
• "The City and County of Denver has launched a progressive performance improvement initiative as envisioned by Mayor Hancock. The Lean methodology in place at Denver Health will be foundational to transforming Denver’s local Government and reinvigorating our citizen-focused culture of continuous learning. The City of Denver is leveraging Denver Health’s Lean Academy to launch our journey by training executives as well as process improvement facilitators. The hands-on Lean training from Denver Health will be the launching pad for how the City of Denver will make tangible operational improvements aimed at improving service levels while achieving efficiencies within our exciting Peak Performance initiative."
  -Scotty Martin, Manager, Business Process Improvement, Budget and Management Office, City and County of Denver