Your work order request is now complete

Some of you may have noticed a yellow sticky note with a happy man on the top giving you the thumbs up. Maintenance workers are posting these at sites to notify staff their work order request is completed.

“Before the sticky notes, our office would receive calls because people were unsure if the order was actually filled, but now we’ve streamlined communication with a simple sticky note,” explains Wallace Chang, electrical supervisor.

The sticky note is one of many employee-led ideas being applied across VGH after a four-day workshop was held for facilities and maintenance workers last April. Representatives from all trades were brought together to brainstorm solutions to common problems they and their colleagues experienced in day-to-day work.

Work is being prioritized

Travel time was one issue staff identified as a major obstacle to completing work order requests. Before the workshop, maintenance workers averaged two hours of travel time a day to walk from building to building to complete each assigned task. In response, staff sectioned VGH into four zones complete with a satellite parts store and coordinated employee schedules within the zones assigned. “Now work order requests are zoned and there’s no wasted time,” says Rian Dodds, VGH senior manager, facilities management, maintenance and operations. “Thanks to this initiative, we’ve reduced travel time by 1.5 hours a day and increased time to complete work orders.”

All in all, representatives at the workshop provided 34 recommendations to streamline work flow and decrease backlog. Changes are being implemented through a 30-60-90 day plan. “We are now prioritizing work order requests based on whether they affect the patient right away, or if it is considered routine,” says Wallace.

Voices are being heard

Since the workshop took place, there’s been a 46% reduction in work order backlog, with an additional 70 work orders completed each week. Rian has also noticed a considerable change in dynamic since the plan was incorporated – both in work flow and employee engagement. “Everyone is participating in the morning huddles, and voicing concerns. Everyone’s productive, engaged, and excited to share ideas.”

Wallace can attest to that. “People aren’t afraid to bring a problem forward because they see stuff getting done. Our voices are being heard and everyone is being included.”