Six Sigma

Health Management Glossary

Quality Management

Definition. Six Sigma is a data-driven improvement methodology that aims to reduce variation and defects in processes, typically using the DMAIC cycle: define, measure, analyse, improve and control.

Explanation

In health care, Six Sigma has been combined with discrete-event simulation to shorten patient discharge time (Arafeh et al., 2018) and with Lean to reduce the risk of healthcare-associated infections in surgery (Montella et al., 2016).

Lean Six Sigma joins the waste focus of Lean with the statistical rigour of Six Sigma. Its success depends on trained project leaders and reliable data.

Related concepts

Lean management Statistical process control Healthcare-associated infection Discrete-event simulation Quality improvement

Read on The Health Topics

• Streamlining Patient Discharge with Six Sigma and Discrete Event Simulation
• Lean Six Sigma to Reduce Healthcare-Associated Infections in Surgery

References

Arafeh, M., Barghash, M. A., Haddad, N., Musharbash, N., Nashawati, D., Al-Bashir, A., & Assaf, F. (2018). Using Six Sigma DMAIC methodology and discrete event simulation to reduce patient discharge time in King Hussein Cancer Center. Journal of Healthcare Engineering, 2018, Article 3832151. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/3832151

Montella, E., Di Cicco, M. V., Ferraro, A., Centobelli, P., Raiola, E., Triassi, M., & Improta, G. (2016). The application of Lean Six Sigma methodology to reduce the risk of healthcare–associated infections in surgery departments. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, 22(6), 1198–1205. https://doi.org/10.1111/jep.12662

Cite this entry: Kurutkan, M. N. (2026). Six Sigma. In The Health Topics glossary. https://healthtopic.org/glossary/six-sigma/

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