Lean Six Sigma Application in Reducing Patient Waiting Time in a State General Hospital in Kaduna State

This study applies Lean Six Sigma principles to reduce patient waiting times in the outpatient department of a state general hospital in Kaduna State, North West Nigeria. Extended waiting times are among the most frequently cited sources of patient dissatisfaction in Nigerian public hospitals and reflect underlying process inefficiencies in appointment scheduling, clinical workflow, and support service integration. The research follows the DMAIC improvement cycle, with the Define phase establishing a target of reducing mean outpatient waiting time from one hundred and forty-two minutes to sixty minutes. Value stream mapping during the Measure phase identifies the registration, triage, and pharmacy dispensing stages as primary contributors to total waiting time. Statistical analysis in the Analyse phase reveals that pharmacy dispensing wait is the single largest component, representing thirty-eight percent of total journey time, driven by handwritten prescription transcription errors requiring pharmacist rework. Improvement interventions include introduction of a printed prescription template, dedicated patient flow coordinator role, and reconfiguration of the pharmacy layout to separate new prescriptions from repeat dispensing. Post-improvement measurement shows mean waiting time reduced to seventy-three minutes, representing a forty-nine percent reduction. Keywords: Lean Six Sigma, patient waiting time, outpatient department, hospital operations, Kaduna State