Description
Book SynopsisPatient safety in health systems has become more and more important as a theme in health research, and so it is not surprising to see a growing interest in applying systems thinking to healthcare. However there is a difficulty â health systems are very complex and constantly adapting to respond to core drivers and fit needs. How do you apply systems thinking in this situation, and what methods are available? National health authorities, international donors and research practitioners need to know the âœhow-toâ of conducting health systems research from a systems thinking perspective.
This book will fill this gap and provide a range of tools that give clear guidance of ways to carry out systems thinking in health, with real-world examples. These methodologies include:
â System dynamics and causal loops
â Network analysis
â Outcome mapping
â Soft systems methodology
And many more.
Written by an international team of experts in
Table of Contents
1. Introduction – Scope, intended audience and how to use this handbook
2. Systems approaches in health systems research – approaches for embedding research
3. Boundary critique – approaches for framing methodological design
4. Soft systems methodology – an approach for stakeholder and researcher reflection on a problem
5. Cynefin – a tool for situating the problem in a sense-making framework
6. Causal loop diagrams – a tool for visualizing emergent system behaviour
7. Network analysis – a tool for understanding social network behaviour of a system
8. Human systems dynamics – a tool for understanding self-organizing behaviour of actors in the system
9. Process mapping – a tool for visualizing system processes from end-to-end
10. Systems dynamics – a tool for modelling and testing solutions
11. Scenario technique – a tool for simulating and reflecting on alternative solutions
12. Outcome mapping – a tool for planning, monitoring and evaluating complex interventions in systems
13. Conclusion – How these approaches and tools can fit together and be used
