Make the Patient Well
As a senior member of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers, several years ago, I read in a newsletter of the Society for Health Systems (SHS) — a division of the Institute — it’s top line goal: “To make the patient well.”
A shared responsibility of the care teams and the patients, I suggest. — Vir Alvaran
. . . . . . .PROSTATE CANCER WARRIORS . . . . . . Support Groups' Encouragements
Why This Book?
PROSTATE CANCER WARRIORS: Encouragements from Prostate Cancer Support Groups
In a given year, up to 300,000 Americans, Canadians and Australians; 450,000 Europeans, 1.4 million in 118 countries worldwide get diagnosed with prostate cancer (PC).
“This is not what I wanted to tell you, that you have cancer,” a urologist told his patient. But truth be told, even an advanced aggressive cancer is not a death sentence, says a very active poster in a support group who has had his PC for 16 years already. His story, and many others, is a beacon of hope and helps new members of an ever-growing support group to overcome their anxiety about their chances of survival and quality of life after treatments.
There are also women members of the support group who join the discussions so that they are better able to support their spouses. Certainly, support groups are not only for men but also for their spouses, mates. As well, for daughters, sisters, and others who may have fathers, brothers, friends that they can help with and support in the prostate cancer journey.
Today and tomorrow. This book is for you.
The Author, a PC Warrior
Change in Mission
CloserToLean started several years ago as an OpEx or “Lean Six Sigma” consulting company. Founded by a quarter century (1997-2024) member of OACETT (Canada) and the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers, Georgia USA–north of the border, also known as the Canadian Society for Industrial Engineering (IISE Region XIV).
At the end of 2025, following our founder’s retirement from the industry, our focus and mission changed to help warriors fight prostate cancer (PC).
Notably, many engineers who belong to the IISE division called the Society for Health Systems (SHS) work in health care.
Our previous mission: Help companies achieve operational excellence with Lean Six Sigma tools
https://opexsociety.org/about/leadership/
The first link above is the society’s main page. Lean Six Sigma methodologies have applications in a broad range of industries including manufacturing, healthcare, transportation and logistics, the service industries, and so forth. (Note that a division of IISE is also known as the Society for Health Systems.)
On the second link, visitors can find the OpEx Society Advisory Board members from different countries. Many of them have contributed to our growing Body of Knowledge. The position of the photographs rotate such that no Advisory member’s photograph is permanently at the top, bottom, or somewhere in between.
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) on September 29, 2025 assigned ISBN 978-1-0698053-0-0 to the book Prostate Cancer Warriors, Encouragements from Prostate Cancer Support Groups. As of this date, the book is not yet searchable pending submission of copies to LAC Legal Deposit (one copy for preservation collection, another copy for consultation). The book will be off the press in November 2025, written by a Prostate Cancer Warrior himself (“one of us”).