Managing Complexity in Healthcare

Download Managing Complexity in Healthcare PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1000630080
Total Pages : 115 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (6 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Managing Complexity in Healthcare by : Lesley Kuhn

Download or read book Managing Complexity in Healthcare written by Lesley Kuhn and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2022-05-24 with total page 115 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Managing Complexity in Healthcare introduces the ComEntEth (Complex Entropic Ethical) model as an integrated bio-medical and philosophical approach to understanding how people get things done in healthcare. Drawing on the complexity sciences, studies of entropy in living organisms and the ethics of Emmanuel Levinas, healthcare is theorised as energetic relational exchanges between people as entropic and ethical entities that unfold around a central attractor: Reduction in elevated entropy or suffering in patients. Living entities are engaged in a continuous struggle against the tendency to produce entropy. From the cellular to the collective of human endeavours, the tendency of complex systems is to disorder and decay. Yet in the micro-activity of healthcare enterprise, people resist this tendency by expending energy to create order and sustain life. Making sense of how this miraculous work is made possible is the foundation of this book. Through practical examples – from analysis of practitioner burnout, rural and remote healthcare, the functioning of emergency departments, to government, social and institutional responses to the COVID-19 pandemic – this new integral philosophy provides practitioners, managers, policy designers, and scholars an effective way to understand the dynamics of daily processes and practices that link the micro of everyday interactions with the macro-trends of healthcare.

Engineering a Learning Healthcare System

Download Engineering a Learning Healthcare System PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309120640
Total Pages : 340 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Engineering a Learning Healthcare System by : National Academy of Engineering

Download or read book Engineering a Learning Healthcare System written by National Academy of Engineering and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2011-07-14 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Improving our nation's healthcare system is a challenge which, because of its scale and complexity, requires a creative approach and input from many different fields of expertise. Lessons from engineering have the potential to improve both the efficiency and quality of healthcare delivery. The fundamental notion of a high-performing healthcare system-one that increasingly is more effective, more efficient, safer, and higher quality-is rooted in continuous improvement principles that medicine shares with engineering. As part of its Learning Health System series of workshops, the Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Value and Science-Driven Health Care and the National Academy of Engineering, hosted a workshop on lessons from systems and operations engineering that could be applied to health care. Building on previous work done in this area the workshop convened leading engineering practitioners, health professionals, and scholars to explore how the field might learn from and apply systems engineering principles in the design of a learning healthcare system. Engineering a Learning Healthcare System: A Look at the Future: Workshop Summary focuses on current major healthcare system challenges and what the field of engineering has to offer in the redesign of the system toward a learning healthcare system.

Complexity Leadership

Download Complexity Leadership PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : F.A. Davis
ISBN 13 : 0803699077
Total Pages : 273 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (36 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Complexity Leadership by : Diana M Crowell

Download or read book Complexity Leadership written by Diana M Crowell and published by F.A. Davis. This book was released on 2020-01-07 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Lead effectively in today's complex health systems! As hospitals and healthcare organizations strive to meet standards to achieve status in the Magnet Hospital Recognition Program and address the issues in the Institute of Medicine’s Nursing Work Force Issues Initiative, they must be able to respond in ways that embrace rapid change. The 3rd Edition of this groundbreaking text addresses the leadership roles advanced practice nurses can assume in this new environment. It defines the concept of complexity and teaches the leadership skills that are best suited for complex adaptive systems, while also enabling you to build the self-awareness you need to learn new ways to lead. Case studies help you apply your new skills and prepare for your advanced practice roles.

Complex Systems in Medicine

Download Complex Systems in Medicine PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3030245934
Total Pages : 253 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (32 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Complex Systems in Medicine by : David C. Aron

Download or read book Complex Systems in Medicine written by David C. Aron and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-08-30 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This unique title explores complex systems in clinical medicine and the subsequent implementation of that knowledge into practice. Written conversationally and as a reflection on the journey of learning about complex systems, the book explores how knowledge of these systems can be applied to four key roles in academic medicine: clinical practice, education, research, and administration. Further, this title emphasizes how gaining an understanding of complex systems can greatly help a physician deal with the many challenges found in academic medicine. Unlike other books on complexity in medicine, which tend to focus on only one aspect of the management of patients, Complex Systems in Medicine deals with the multifaceted roles of a physician. The approach in this book is uniquely qualitative rather than mathematical, and is written to make it not only of interest to physicians, trainees, and allied health providers, but also to make it more accessible to a non-medical audience. The inclusion of personal anecdotes by the author provides concrete examples of the application of knowledge of complex systems in academic medicine. A first-of-its-kind contribution to the literature, Complex Systems in Medicine: A Hedgehog’s Tale of Complexity in Clinical Practice, Research, Education, and Management is not only a novel reference for medical professionals, it is an accessible tool for the non-medical audience hoping to learn more about complex systems and their direct relevance to medicine, a field that deals with the infinite variety of humans and their ills. It illustrates the consequences of the interactive elements of patient care that make medicine both a science and an art.

Understanding and Managing the Complexity of Healthcare

Download Understanding and Managing the Complexity of Healthcare PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262320746
Total Pages : 297 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (623 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Understanding and Managing the Complexity of Healthcare by : William B. Rouse

Download or read book Understanding and Managing the Complexity of Healthcare written by William B. Rouse and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2014-07-11 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An argument that understanding healthcare delivery as a complex adaptive system will help us design a system that yields better health outcomes. Breakthroughs in medical science, innovations in medical technologies, and improvements in clinical practices occur today at an increasingly rapid rate. Yet because of a fragmented healthcare delivery system, many Americans are unable to benefit from these developments. How can we design a system that can provide high-quality, affordable healthcare for everyone? In this book, William Rouse and Nicoleta Serban introduce concepts, principles, models, and methods for understanding, and improving, healthcare delivery. Approaching the topic from the perspectives of engineering and statistics, they argue that understanding healthcare delivery as a complex adaptive system will help us design a system that is more efficient, effective, and equitable. The authors use multilevel simulation models as a quantitative tool for evaluating alternate ways of organizing healthcare delivery. They employ this approach, for example, in their discussions of affordability, a prevention and wellness program, chronic disease management, and primary care accessibility for children in the Medicaid program. They also consider possible benefits from a range of technologies, including electronic health records and telemedicine; data mining as an alternative to randomized trials; conceptual and analytical methodologies that address the complexity of the healthcare system; and how these principles, models, and methods can enable transformational change.

Advances in Health Care Management

Download Advances in Health Care Management PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : JAI Press Incorporated
ISBN 13 : 9780762306848
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (68 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Advances in Health Care Management by : Myron D. Fottler

Download or read book Advances in Health Care Management written by Myron D. Fottler and published by JAI Press Incorporated. This book was released on 2000-12-20 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Features reviews and research on topics in the field of health care management. This work also contains papers from the Health Care Management Division of the Academy of Management.

Textbook of Patient Safety and Clinical Risk Management

Download Textbook of Patient Safety and Clinical Risk Management PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3030594033
Total Pages : 496 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (35 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Textbook of Patient Safety and Clinical Risk Management by : Liam Donaldson

Download or read book Textbook of Patient Safety and Clinical Risk Management written by Liam Donaldson and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-12-14 with total page 496 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Implementing safety practices in healthcare saves lives and improves the quality of care: it is therefore vital to apply good clinical practices, such as the WHO surgical checklist, to adopt the most appropriate measures for the prevention of assistance-related risks, and to identify the potential ones using tools such as reporting & learning systems. The culture of safety in the care environment and of human factors influencing it should be developed from the beginning of medical studies and in the first years of professional practice, in order to have the maximum impact on clinicians' and nurses' behavior. Medical errors tend to vary with the level of proficiency and experience, and this must be taken into account in adverse events prevention. Human factors assume a decisive importance in resilient organizations, and an understanding of risk control and containment is fundamental for all medical and surgical specialties. This open access book offers recommendations and examples of how to improve patient safety by changing practices, introducing organizational and technological innovations, and creating effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable care systems, in order to spread the quality and patient safety culture among the new generation of healthcare professionals, and is intended for residents and young professionals in different clinical specialties.

Edgeware

Download Edgeware PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : V H A Incorporated
ISBN 13 : 9780966782806
Total Pages : 280 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (828 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Edgeware by : Brenda Zimmerman

Download or read book Edgeware written by Brenda Zimmerman and published by V H A Incorporated. This book was released on 2001 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This publication is the first book to address complexity science in health care. It represents a revolutionary new way for health care leaders to think about how they engage employees, work with physicians, manage unmanageably complex tasks and plan for an uncertain future. But it's not for health care workers only - this book is useful to anyone interested in how complexity science is changing not only business management, but also how many disciplines of science relate to one another. Complexity science reframes our view of many systems that are only partially understood by traditional scientific methods. Systems as apparently diverse as stock markets, human bodies, ecosystems, immune systems, termite colonies and hospitals seem to share some patterns of behavior. These patterns provide insights into sustainability, viability, and innovation.

Handbook of Systems and Complexity in Health

Download Handbook of Systems and Complexity in Health PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN 13 : 1461449987
Total Pages : 941 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (614 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Handbook of Systems and Complexity in Health by : Joachim P Sturmberg

Download or read book Handbook of Systems and Complexity in Health written by Joachim P Sturmberg and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-01-09 with total page 941 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is an introduction to health care as a complex adaptive system, a system that feeds back on itself. The first section introduces systems and complexity theory from a science, historical, epistemological, and technical perspective, describing the principles and mathematics. Subsequent sections build on the health applications of systems science theory, from human physiology to medical decision making, population health and health services research. The aim of the book is to introduce and expand on important population health issues from a systems and complexity perspective, highlight current research developments and their implications for health care delivery, consider their ethical implications, and to suggest directions for and potential pitfalls in the future.

Healthcare Technology Management Systems

Download Healthcare Technology Management Systems PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Academic Press
ISBN 13 : 0128115602
Total Pages : 205 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (281 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Healthcare Technology Management Systems by : Rossana Rivas

Download or read book Healthcare Technology Management Systems written by Rossana Rivas and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2017-07-17 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Healthcare Technology Management Systems provides a model for implementing an effective healthcare technology management (HTM) system in hospitals and healthcare provider settings, as well as promoting a new analysis of hospital organization for decision-making regarding technology. Despite healthcare complexity and challenges, current models of management and organization of technology in hospitals still has evolved over those established 40-50 years ago, according to totally different circumstances and technologies available now. The current health context based on new technologies demands working with an updated model of management and organization, which requires a re-engineering perspective to achieve appropriate levels of clinical effectiveness, efficiency, safety and quality. Healthcare Technology Management Systems presents best practices for implementing procedures for effective technology management focused on human resources, as well as aspects related to liability, and the appropriate procedures for implementation. - Presents a new model for hospital organization for Clinical Engineers and administrators to implement Healthcare Technology Management (HTM) - Understand how to implement Healthcare Technology Management (HTM) and Health Technology Assessment (HTA) within all types of organizations, including Human Resource impact, Technology Policy and Regulations, Health Technology Planning (HTP) and Acquisition, as well as Asset and Risk Management - Transfer of knowledge from applied research in CE, HTM, HTP and HTA, from award-winning authors who are active in international health organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO), Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), American College of Clinical Engineering (ACCE) and International Federation for Medical and Biological Engineering (IFMBE)

Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care

Download Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309113695
Total Pages : 202 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care by : Institute of Medicine

Download or read book Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2008-09-06 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on the work of the Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine, the 2007 IOM Annual Meeting assessed some of the rapidly occurring changes in health care related to new diagnostic and treatment tools, emerging genetic insights, the developments in information technology, and healthcare costs, and discussed the need for a stronger focus on evidence to ensure that the promise of scientific discovery and technological innovation is efficiently captured to provide the right care for the right patient at the right time. As new discoveries continue to expand the universe of medical interventions, treatments, and methods of care, the need for a more systematic approach to evidence development and application becomes increasingly critical. Without better information about the effectiveness of different treatment options, the resulting uncertainty can lead to the delivery of services that may be unnecessary, unproven, or even harmful. Improving the evidence-base for medicine holds great potential to increase the quality and efficiency of medical care. The Annual Meeting, held on October 8, 2007, brought together many of the nation's leading authorities on various aspects of the issues - both challenges and opportunities - to present their perspectives and engage in discussion with the IOM membership.

Best Care at Lower Cost

Download Best Care at Lower Cost PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309282810
Total Pages : 437 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (92 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Best Care at Lower Cost by : Institute of Medicine

Download or read book Best Care at Lower Cost written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2013-05-10 with total page 437 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: America's health care system has become too complex and costly to continue business as usual. Best Care at Lower Cost explains that inefficiencies, an overwhelming amount of data, and other economic and quality barriers hinder progress in improving health and threaten the nation's economic stability and global competitiveness. According to this report, the knowledge and tools exist to put the health system on the right course to achieve continuous improvement and better quality care at a lower cost. The costs of the system's current inefficiency underscore the urgent need for a systemwide transformation. About 30 percent of health spending in 2009-roughly $750 billion-was wasted on unnecessary services, excessive administrative costs, fraud, and other problems. Moreover, inefficiencies cause needless suffering. By one estimate, roughly 75,000 deaths might have been averted in 2005 if every state had delivered care at the quality level of the best performing state. This report states that the way health care providers currently train, practice, and learn new information cannot keep pace with the flood of research discoveries and technological advances. About 75 million Americans have more than one chronic condition, requiring coordination among multiple specialists and therapies, which can increase the potential for miscommunication, misdiagnosis, potentially conflicting interventions, and dangerous drug interactions. Best Care at Lower Cost emphasizes that a better use of data is a critical element of a continuously improving health system, such as mobile technologies and electronic health records that offer significant potential to capture and share health data better. In order for this to occur, the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, IT developers, and standard-setting organizations should ensure that these systems are robust and interoperable. Clinicians and care organizations should fully adopt these technologies, and patients should be encouraged to use tools, such as personal health information portals, to actively engage in their care. This book is a call to action that will guide health care providers; administrators; caregivers; policy makers; health professionals; federal, state, and local government agencies; private and public health organizations; and educational institutions.

Managing Complexity in Global Organizations

Download Managing Complexity in Global Organizations PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 9780470513118
Total Pages : 312 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (131 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Managing Complexity in Global Organizations by : Ulrich Steger

Download or read book Managing Complexity in Global Organizations written by Ulrich Steger and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2007-04-04 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book delivers new IMD insights on an emerging challenge - how to deal with overwhelming complexity. Global organizations face a complex decision-making environment. On one side, diversity of cultures, customers, competitors and regulations creates complexity; on the other, competitive pressures cause expanding countries to extract more synergies across products and regions. In such a climate, a new way of thinking, acting and organizing is needed beyond the familiar ‘control’ mindset. Drawing together insights from across the expert faculty, Managing Complexity in the Global Organization presents IMD’s framework on how to understand complexity and its four key drivers (diversity; interdependence; ambiguity and flux), along with solutions on specific issues in a variety of functions, industries and markets. The focus is on providing practical solutions based on real-life examples.

Leading Change in Healthcare

Download Leading Change in Healthcare PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Radcliffe Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1846194482
Total Pages : 363 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (461 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Leading Change in Healthcare by : Anthony L. Suchman

Download or read book Leading Change in Healthcare written by Anthony L. Suchman and published by Radcliffe Publishing. This book was released on 2011 with total page 363 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The challenge of transforming organizational culture is at the heart of many key movements in contemporary healthcare, and understanding culture change has become a core leadership competency. However, much current practice is based on antiquated and psychologically unsophisticated theories, leaving leaders inadequately prepared for the complex task of implementing change. Leading Change in Healthcare presents relationship-centered administration, an effective new evidence-based alternative to traditional culture change methodologies. It integrates fresh insights and methods from complexity science, positive psychology and relationship-centered care, enabling a more spontaneous and reflective approach to change management. This fosters greater organizational awareness and real participation, as well as improved productivity and creativity, as well as staff recruitment and retention. Case studies drawn from primary care, hospitals, long-term care, professional education, international NGOs and other settings, rather than emphasizing the end results, are demonstrations of how to apply relationship-centered administration in everyday practice. Leading Change in Healthcare is a key resource for all practitioners, students and teachers of healthcare management, medical educators, and leaders in all areas of healthcare provision. 'We need a new way of seeing, a new way of leading - and the authors provide a clear guide and resources for the path ahead. Leading Change in Healthcare offers hope - and a method. A daily dose is just what the change doctor ordered.' from the Foreword by Carol Aschenbrener

Health Professions Education

Download Health Professions Education PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 030913319X
Total Pages : 191 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Health Professions Education by : Institute of Medicine

Download or read book Health Professions Education written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2003-07-01 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Institute of Medicine study Crossing the Quality Chasm (2001) recommended that an interdisciplinary summit be held to further reform of health professions education in order to enhance quality and patient safety. Health Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality is the follow up to that summit, held in June 2002, where 150 participants across disciplines and occupations developed ideas about how to integrate a core set of competencies into health professions education. These core competencies include patient-centered care, interdisciplinary teams, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and informatics. This book recommends a mix of approaches to health education improvement, including those related to oversight processes, the training environment, research, public reporting, and leadership. Educators, administrators, and health professionals can use this book to help achieve an approach to education that better prepares clinicians to meet both the needs of patients and the requirements of a changing health care system.

Critical Systems Thinking and the Management of Complexity

Download Critical Systems Thinking and the Management of Complexity PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 1119118387
Total Pages : 728 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (191 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Critical Systems Thinking and the Management of Complexity by : Michael C. Jackson

Download or read book Critical Systems Thinking and the Management of Complexity written by Michael C. Jackson and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2019-03-15 with total page 728 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the winner of the INCOSE Pioneer Award 2022 The world has become increasingly networked and unpredictable. Decision makers at all levels are required to manage the consequences of complexity every day. They must deal with problems that arise unexpectedly, generate uncertainty, are characterised by interconnectivity, and spread across traditional boundaries. Simple solutions to complex problems are usually inadequate and risk exacerbating the original issues. Leaders of international bodies such as the UN, OECD, UNESCO and WHO — and of major business, public sector, charitable, and professional organizations — have all declared that systems thinking is an essential leadership skill for managing the complexity of the economic, social and environmental issues that confront decision makers. Systems thinking must be implemented more generally, and on a wider scale, to address these issues. An evaluation of different systems methodologies suggests that they concentrate on different aspects of complexity. To be in the best position to deal with complexity, decision makers must understand the strengths and weaknesses of the various approaches and learn how to employ them in combination. This is called critical systems thinking. Making use of over 25 case studies, the book offers an account of the development of systems thinking and of major efforts to apply the approach in real-world interventions. Further, it encourages the widespread use of critical systems practice as a means of ensuring responsible leadership in a complex world. The INCOSE Pioneer Award is presented to someone who, by their achievements in the engineering of systems, has contributed uniquely to major products or outcomes enhancing society or meeting its needs. The criteria may apply to a single outstanding outcome or a lifetime of significant achievements in effecting successful systems. Comments on a previous version of the book: Russ Ackoff: ‘the book is the best overview of the field I have seen’ JP van Gigch: ‘Jackson does a masterful job. The book is lucid ...well written and eminently readable’ Professional Manager (Journal of the Chartered Management Institute): ‘Provides an excellent guide and introduction to systems thinking for students of management’

Complexity Science in Healthcare

Download Complexity Science in Healthcare PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : NCELTR
ISBN 13 : 9781741384567
Total Pages : 129 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (845 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Complexity Science in Healthcare by : Jeffrey Braithwaite

Download or read book Complexity Science in Healthcare written by Jeffrey Braithwaite and published by NCELTR. This book was released on 2017-08 with total page 129 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Many people believe that healthcare is the example par excellence of a complex adaptive system (CAS). It has a daunting range of diverse stakeholders (citizens, taxpayers, politicians, policymakers, providers, managers, clinicians, patients and patient groups), spans the public and private sectors and delivers care across many settings and through varied types of organisations (public health settings, community centres, hospitals, aged-care facilities, and family or general practices, for example). The individuals delivering care, and the groups, teams, networks, bodies and organisations through which they provide services, interact in intricate configurations, longitudinally. Said that way, certain consequences arise. The system, of necessity, will be adapting to circumstances over time, behaviours won't necessarily be predictable, the sum of the parts will be greater and different from the individual elements making up the system, and the inputs and outputs will not match because relationships within the system are not straightforward-they are non-linear. The complexity science approach to understanding, acting on, and researching health systems is becoming increasingly popular. It is therefore timely to release an analysis of complexity and its characteristics, and apply them to healthcare."--Website.