Chasing the golden fleece : increasing healthcare quality, efficiency and patient satisfaction while reducing costs

There are a number of global concerns in healthcare today including ageing populations, high cost of developing new drugs, high-risk lifestyles, and how to transfer research into practice. However, the overarching goal of healthcare systems everywhere, regardless of the particular issues, is to improve care while at the same time reducing cost. This could be called the ‘Golden Fleece’ of healthcare. Just as in Greek mythology, Jason and his Argonauts embarked on a long and risky journey to find something of which they had only heard rumours, healthcare managers seek methods of providing better care more efficiently, yet many fail on the quest. This is a review article which examines the seven articles which make up one issue of the International Journal of Clinical Governance (IJHG), and exploring themes relating to lean management in health governance