Battalion Aid Station Improved Lead Time By 29% With GLSS
United States
Military
Healthcare
29%
PROJECT SUMMARY
- Problem:Â The time required to establish a medical aid station directly impacts the ability to save lives on the battlefield. The average lead time was 45 minutes, and every minute saved could help save lives.
- Root Causes Discovered:
- Time wasted searching for necessary items
- Disorganization within the staging area
- Equipment not efficiently loaded during the previous breakdown
- Significant variation in processes and setup
- Unclear roles and responsibilities
- Inconsistent performance between aid station establishments
- Solution:Â Developed standard work and an optimized process sequence, supported by cross-training and clear equipment labeling.
- Results:Â Aid station establishment lead time decreased from 45 to 32 minutes, a 29% improvement, while breakdown lead time decreased from 36 to 25 minutes, a 31% improvement. These results positioned the team as arguably one of the most efficient aid stations within the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team (2SBCT), and potentially across the U.S. Army.
A Battalion Aid Station (BAS) is designed to provide advanced trauma life support on the battlefield. Its primary mission is to receive sick and wounded personnel and stabilize their condition. The BAS is structured to operate as far forward as the tactical situation permits while remaining mobile enough to keep pace with troop movements.
For the past six months, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment, averaged 45 minutes to establish the Battalion Aid Station. Although this was considered a good response time, the entire medical platoon believed the process could be improved.
First Lieutenant William A. Norman, Medical Services Corps says, âThe faster we can establish our Aid Station, the faster we can receive and treat patients on the battlefieldâultimately leading to saving lives.â
William was chosen to lead this project. He decided the project would be perfect for the systematic improvement approach he was learning in his GLSSÂ Green Belt Training & Certification.
When asked what was most helpful with the GLSS training, William noted, âI liked the work at your own pace. That was beneficial, being in the military and not knowing when Iâd have access to my computer.â
âI would definitely say start [with the requirements] because when youâre focused on what youâre actually required to do, you have a whole new process you could be working in. You could have a whole new direction that something could be taken instead of, âWell, weâve always done it this way.ââ
William conducted classes with the medical platoon to work on the project and discuss how to apply what he learned through GLSS Training & Certification.
Reflecting on the teamâs engagement and support for the project, William says, âYouâre surrounded by medical providers; each one wants to get better and more proficient because that correlates to saving lives on the battlefield. Everybody can get behind that.â
âThe GLSS interactive training modules and the case study made it very easy to understand the content. It made all the concepts easier to communicate to the platoon. I could take the content and summarize it quickly because GLSS made it easy.ââ
Using the GLSS training William shared, the medical platoon worked diligently to develop a Data Collection Plan with clear, easy-to-understand measures. The ultimate goal was to define how aid station establishment time would be measured and identify opportunities for improvement.
William recalls, âAfter a considerable amount of debate, we landed on measuring establishment as the amount of time it takes from the moment the medical platoon arrives on-ground to the moment that aid station is ready to receive patients.â
The data revealed a baseline mean aid station establishment time of 45 minutes and 14 seconds. However, due to process variation, establishment could take as long as 55 minutes. The data was collected across 12 training cycle iterations at Fort Carson, Colorado.
Digging deeper into the data and process, the team used a Fishbone Diagram, another valuable technique from the Green Belt Training, to explore the potential causes contributing to aid station establishment time.
Among the numerous factors involved, the team used logic, data, and process observations to identify the root causes driving aid station establishment time:
- Time spent locating equipment
- Too many variations in aid station configuration
- Unclear roles and assignments
- Inconsistent execution of the process
The team also conducted a Value-Added Flow Analysis of the process steps. The team was surprised to discover a significant opportunity to reduce one of the 8 Wastes, specifically Waiting. This included time spent waiting for:
- Guidance from leadership on what should be placed next in the process
- QA/QC of the aid station following establishment
Another major âahaâ emerged during the analysis: there was significant confusion about which containers were needed and when they were needed during the process.
Following the guidance and methods from GLSS Training & Certification, the team identified improvement ideas and used the Solution Selection Matrix to determine the best solutions to implement. This included establishing Standard Work through:
- Developing new process requirements in collaboration with external organizations and sister platoons
- Creating a refined aid station setup
- Optimizing the sequence of establishment process steps
- Clarifying roles and responsibilities
- Labeling containers and determining the proper sequence for unloading and loading
- Conducting Takt Time Analysis to determine ideal task times and assignments
- Cross-training all medical platoon members on every aspect of the setup process
The average aid station establishment lead time was reduced from 45 minutes to 32 minutes, a 29% improvement. The average lead time for breaking down the aid station, including removing all equipment and preparing to move to another location, was reduced from 36 minutes to 25 minutes, a 31% improvement. Both establishment and breakdown times were significantly reduced, allowing the aid station to receive and treat patients faster and more efficiently.
William states, âDecreasing establishment lead time by 29% and breakdown by 31% is an outstanding success. It is visible to the entire team that collaborated on this project. This transition helped us become the most efficient aid station within the 2SBCT and likely one of the most efficient aid stations in the entire Army.â
William continues, âThe success of this project will undoubtedly lead to saving lives at the end of the day. With shorter lead times for the aid station, we can now receive and treat patients in a smaller amount of time which directly translates to being able to sustain Americaâs Army!â
An After Action Review (AAR) of the project identified several additional improvement opportunities for the aid station, as well as other projects within the battalion focused on reducing lead time. GLSS Lean Six Sigma Training & Certification is a natural fit for the Armyâs continual pursuit to âBe All You Can Beâ!
