COMPLEX SYSTEMS IN SCIENCE AND SOCIETY:
Healthcare and Public Health
|
Healthcare providers are an intensively trained and highly skilled group of people working in an increasingly challenging field. For almost ten years, NECSI's scientific research has been helping healthcare organizations to deepen their understanding of the insights from complex systems research and their application to improving healthcare. NECSI's contributions have ranged from working with individuals to improve communication channels and reduce medical errors, to advising government health policy organizations on the most efficient methods to promote public health. Delivering high-quality healthcare is a demanding task. Our current healthcare system is struggling to meet this task and make it affordable. Doctors and administrators have more medications, specialized equipment and access to information than ever before. While more options offer the potential to increase the quality of the care, they also make communication, coordination and decision making more difficult. Evidence of this complexity is widespread, and can lead to unanticipated-- and undesirable-- consequences. Medical errors and rising insurance premiums are symptoms of a healthcare system that is not functioning effectively. New approaches to solving complex healthcare system problems are clearly needed. For more about NECSI's contributions to healthcare and public health, click the links below. Publications • Y. Bar-Yam, Improving the Effectiveness of Health Care and Public Health: A Multi-Scale Complex Systems Analysis, American Journal of Public Health, vol. 96 no. 3, 459-466, 2006. press release • Y. Bar-Yam, System Care: Multiscale analysis of Medical Errors—Eliminating errors and improving organizational capabilities, NECSI Technical Report 2004-09-01 (September 2004). Past Programs |