Improve clinical processes in three meetings

Many health care organizations have developed methodologies to improve their processes of care. Most have outputs, such as clinical paths and/or algorithms, that require dozens of meetings over many months to design. Morton Plant Health System has taken a "SWAT team" approach and created a multi-hospital, multi-disciplinary team that develops recommendations and process changes after only three meetings of the entire team over two to three months. The organization has been highly successful, with process changes resulting in improve outcomes and savings in charges (1995 compared to 1994) of more than $22 million. What was the evolution of this process, what is the "SWAT" team approach and how does it work, and why has Morton Plant Health System been so successful in its efforts?