PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - S K Liu
AU  - K Homa
AU  - J R Butterly
AU  - K B Kirkland
AU  - P B Batalden
TI  - Improving the simple, complicated and complex realities of community-acquired pneumonia
AID  - 10.1136/qshc.2008.028514
DP  - 2009 Apr 01
TA  - Quality and Safety in Health Care
PG  - 93--98
VI  - 18
IP  - 2
4099  - http://qualitysafety.bmj.com/content/18/2/93.short
4100  - http://qualitysafety.bmj.com/content/18/2/93.full
SO  - Qual Saf Health Care2009 Apr 01; 18
AB  - This paper first describes efforts to improve the care for patients hospitalised with community-acquired pneumonia and the associated changes in quality measures at a rural academic medical centre. The results of the improvement interventions and the associated clinical realities, expected outcomes, measures, improvement interventions and improvement aims are then re-examined using the Glouberman and Zimmerman typology of healthcare problems—simple, complicated and complex. The typology is then used to explore the future design and assessment of improvement interventions, which may allow better matching with the types of problem healthcare providers and organisations are confronted with. Matching improvement interventions with problem category has the possibility of improving the success of improvement efforts and the reliability of care while at the same time preserving needed provider autonomy and judgement to adapt care for more complex problems.