The Organisational Performance Tracker: A framework for system-wide improvement

Abstract

This paper discusses a solution that was constructed by Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, a six-hospital system in Memphis, TN, to align organisational performance to the vision of being nationally recognised for excellence. To achieve that goal by the target date of 2020, transformational disruption was needed to accelerate progress. Performance goals were redefined as top quartile results versus incremental improvement over baseline. The number of performance indicators included on the balanced scorecard swelled from just 3 to 70. By the end of the first year, the level of improvement in quality was so pronounced that the tool was expanded to also track measures of patient experience and employee engagement. The solution, the Organisational Performance Tracker (OPT), has established a clear and actionable path towards that vision. Even more importantly, OPT has driven a system-wide change in mindset towards a culture of clinical and service excellence.