title: Introducing soft systems methodology plus (SSM+): why we need it and what it can contribute.
abstract: There are many complicated and seemingly intractable problems in the health care sector. Past ways to address them have involved political responses, economic restructuring, biomedical and scientific studies, and managerialist or business-oriented tools. Few methods have enabled us to develop a systematic response to problems. Our version of soft systems methodology, SSM+, seems to improve problem solving processes by providing an iterative, staged framework that emphasises collaborative learning and systems redesign involving both technical and cultural fixes.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Management Programs, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales.
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Braithwaite
authors.forename: Don
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hindle
authors.forename: Rick
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Iedema
authors.forename: Johanna I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Westbrook
mesh_terms: D001315:Australia; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational; D019981:Health Care Sector / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008331:Management Information Systems; D015279:Organizational Culture; D011340:Problem Solving; D018794:Problem-Based Learning; D017064:Process Assessment, Health Care; D012984:Software; D013597:Systems Analysis