Improving How We Work: Part 2

5S—The Perfect Pandemic Project

I remember that I first heard the term “5S” in late 2019 when talking with our business consultant, Jon Sackett. I thought, “What the heck does that mean?” Fast forward a year and a half, and I could probably give an entire lecture on this.

5S stands for sort, simplify, sweep, standardize and sustain. These 5 words are the basis of a Lean Management System to help clean, organize and maintain the order within a location. For a small physical therapy company like Pain Science Physical Therapy, it is a process in which we maintain order and cleanliness in the clinic. To accomplish any level of cleanliness, we first needed to spend 2 WHOLE DAYS cleaning, sorting, and simplifying the clinic. We took EVERYTHING out of EVERY drawer and cabinet, put it all in the gym and went through it all. For those of you who have Marie Kondo’d your home, you totally get it. It was exhausting.

The first question is why do this? PSPT has been in the same location for 11 years. If you spend a long enough time in one place, you naturally accrue a lot of stuff. For those of you who have lived in your homes for many years, you get my drift. The more stuff there is, the more disorganized things can get. In a clinical setting, we really need to know where our stuff is (things like first aid and spill kits), and we also need to make sure that we get rid of things that aren’t used. I cannot tell you how many gait belts, walkers and braces we have been given by patients throughout the years. It is so kind of all of you, but they were all gathering dust.

Now, don’t get me wrong. The clinic has been thoroughly cleaned and organized at least once a quarter for as long as I can remember. We’ve nailed down that process. It was the sweep, standardize and sustain parts that we didn’t have any clue how to tackle. The most frustrating thing is trying to find a tool you need while treating a patient, thinking it was in the last place you put it, and not finding it there. Those of you with siblings totally get this. We all had different ideas as to where things belong. We were finding that objects in the clinic tended to grow legs and move.

For those of you who come and visit the clinic, you may not notice anything other than pretty photos on cabinets and a general feeling that the clinic is well organized and clean! If that is what you notice, then HURRAH!!! We have succeeded! It makes me thrilled to look around the clinic today almost 4 months after starting 5S. Everything is in its place, and everything has a place. If it doesn’t have a place, then we easily create that place and designate the parking spot with cards and images. It is fantastic to know that I can go to a spot in the gym and find the exact thing I am looking for in its correct parking spot!

The second question is how did we do this? After we cleaned and got rid of everything we do not use (including furniture), we designated spots for each item by taking a photo of the item(s) and putting them on laminated cards. The card lives in the area that is the parking spot. We also have cards (these are called Kanban in case you wanted to look it up) that set up “par” levels for items. These set up the minimum of an item we need to have in stock at any time. This has been a lifesaver and money saver for us. Now we don’t over order anything. Things are ordered when they need to be, but not before then. Finally, we have one person, Maria, who is the process owner. She audits the 5S process regularly to make sure everything is running smooth and teaches others in the clinic what that process looks like. This way everyone is aware of the systems in place and can suggest changes and improvements as we continue to grow.

This has been an exciting time for us because we have seen what this system allows us to do. We minimize waste and backstock, save money and keep the clinic clean and organized. It’s a win all around!