Sharing knowledge! Tec professor advises hospital in California

Thanks to his Lean Healthcare knowledge, Tec Guadalajara professor Agustín Pérez-Araos was invited to be an advisor for the problem-solving teams at the Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center in California.

He also joined the research team at the Center for Lean Engagement and Research (CLEAR) at the University of California at Berkeley (UCB), where his work aimed to identify the financial impact of the post-pandemic era in hospitals that use Lean Healthcare.

The results of his research show that hospitals which implemented Lean Healthcare in their improvement activities responded more effectively to the challenges of the pandemic, had better financial performance, and experienced fewer problems in patient care compared to the practices of those who do not use it, he said.

The main activities during his stay at Berkeley-CLEAR were:

• Specialized consulting on Lean Healthcare in hospitals
• Research activities on post-pandemic issues
• Presentation of collaborative initiatives for future projects

Hospital consultancy

This allowed him to share his experience and best practices in Lean Healthcare to apply these processes in a hospital context that expects measurable results.

During his visits to the hospital, he participated as an advisor in several quality circle sessions or Gemba walks in the Emergency and Maternity areas.

He also provided advisory services to staff from the Kaizen (quality management method) promotion office. During these visits, they analyzed indicator panels, problem-solving, and visual aids. Subsequently, he held a feedback and counseling session for the continuous improvement managers.

They also showed him their group communication dynamics in huddles (effective problem-solving meetings), which address specific situations requiring the teams’ attention.

“This consultancy was very enriching during my stay, both for the lessons learned and the opportunity to pass on my knowledge to a first-rate hospital,” said the professor.

Applied research

“Lean Manufacturing has evolved, at first towards service sectors, and now hospitals. Basically, it is the application of Japanese philosophies in a healthcare environment. This center in Berkeley specializes in it,” the academic said.

CLEAR’s mission is to carry out timely and practical research on initiatives to transform the health care system comprehensively.

The CLEAR activities he participated in included a study into the financial impact and employee shortage during the post-pandemic period in US hospitals.

According to the research conducted by the professor, the improvement tools that showed the best performance were:

• Quality analysis tools
• Effective problem-solving meetings (huddles)
• Lean processes

Sharing the results

As a result of this research work, the possibility of writing a paper is also being explored. Pérez-Araos also presented these findings at the 9th CLEAR Symposium in March 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was invited as a speaker.

“It allowed me to enrich not only my professional career as a professor but also my personal life, both for the lessons learned and for the experience of working at a top-level university such as UCB,” said the professor.

The Berkeley invitation highlights the interest in Pérez-Araos’ advice due to his “outstanding contributions in the field of Lean Healthcare in Mexico.”

“We believe that his knowledge will enrich our academic community, as well as benefit our professors and students and promote collaborative research,” the document added.

“It was a great experience because, although they are familiar with the tools, I was able to identify areas of opportunity and share my knowledge with them. It was very satisfying to make a contribution not just to research but also to application,” said the academic.

“This allowed me to see the relationship between what you research and reality, as well as forming part of an outreach program between hospitals in Guadalajara and one of the largest hospitals in the United States,” he said.

Improvement tools proposed by Pérez-Araos:

• Pokayoke – Error-proofing systems
• FMEA Lean Healthcare – Failure mode and effects analysis for risk prevention
• TPM – Total productive maintenance, use, and maintenance of equipment
• Andon boards – Signs, visual aids, visual aids, etc.
• Kanban – Inventory control, for pharmaceutical warehouses
• SMED: How to have a more effective and faster preparation of spaces.

“This allowed me to see the relationship between what you research and reality.” - Agustín Pérez-Araos

Finally, together with the staff of UCB and CLEAR, he defined a strategy for collaboration and consultancy on Lean Healthcare issues with the medical tourism cluster in Jalisco to establish contacts and relationships for future projects.

This will bring Berkeley and the Guadalajara Tec closer together to work on future research and development projects.

CLEAR is a research center belonging to the UCB School of Public Health. Its mission is to carry out timely, relevant, and practical research on initiatives for the comprehensive transformation of the healthcare system.

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