Quality professionals know that there is never enough time or as many resources as needed to do everything that needs to be done. We usually have a very large list of quality improvements that “should” be completed and it grows every day with input from GEMBA walks, internal and external audits, and personal observations, etc.
I’m not talking about critical quality functions like addressing Non-Conformances, CAPAs or Complaints. I’m talking about those little things that seem to pile up over time. A form that could be revised for clarity, a procedure that could be combined with another or improved, a myriad of other things that should eventually be addressed.
Personally, I have my team collect our various observations and action items and add them to our Quality Punch List (QPL). We meet monthly to prioritize these activities. Patient safety concerns and compliance issues are always our top priority and they are assigned a resource to implement the improvement.
…But what do you do with all of the others?
It should be a goal of all organizations to improve the overall Quality Intelligence Quotient (Quality IQ) and I can think of no better way of doing this than to have the entire organization participate in activities traditionally reserved for, or in the purview of the Quality department.
So, to get everyone involved, we’ve developed a Quality Improvement game based on Hasbro’s Classic Murder Mystery Game Clue®. But, to emphasize that we’re focusing on “Quality”, we’ve rebranded our version of the game as “QLUE” spelled with a “Q”.
In the classic Clue®, Mr. Boddy is found dead inside his mansion. The object of the game is to determine who the killer is, the murder weapon they used, and the room in which the crime occurred!
In our twist on the game, ProMed’s QLUE teams of employees determine who killed Mr. Boddy, where in our factory the murder was committed, and what weapon was used. The team that correctly identifies who, where, and with what weapon, wins.
ProMed’s QLUE game is intended to help elevate the overall Quality IQ of ProMed so the “clues” used to solve the mystery are associated with Quality or Safety Improvements.
Instead of rolling dice to move, as in the original game, our game uses points earned by completing quality or safety compliance related activities. These activities are designed to teach the teams about quality, safety and compliance issues and how we, as ProMed personnel, regardless of our assigned departments, can work together to address them.
[ picture coming soon ]
The mascot for each team is a QLUE character. Characters, or “Suspects” include Dr. Green, Colonel Mustard, Miss Scarlet, Prince Phillipe Azure, Lady Su Sian Lavender and Rusty Nayler. Team members for each team are assigned randomly, but each team is assigned a QA representative. The goal is to have a diverse team in terms of skill sets and job functions.
Games are intended to last one quarter each. If a game is finished early, an additional game may be played. If no team wins during the quarter, or no team can successfully solve the murder mystery, the winner will be determined by what team successfully collected the most points.
ProMed’s version of QLUE is intended to be a fun way to help increase ProMed’s “Quality Culture” by having a diverse group of team members work together to solve problems that are typically reserved for Quality Assurance to resolve alone or with very few other departments. Learning what those problems are, how they are handled, and the impact upon our customers and patients using our products will broaden everyone’s experiences and ultimately increase our Quality IQ.
QLUE brings everyone together to tackle important, but not critical observations and action items on the QPL; actions that might never reach the top of our list!