title: Decision support for patient care: implementing cybernetics.
abstract: The application of principles and methods of cybernetics permits clinicians and managers to use feedback about care effectiveness and resource expenditure to improve quality and to control costs. Keys to the process are the specification of therapeutic goals and the creation of an organizational culture that supports the use of feedback to improve care. Daily feedback on the achievement of each patient's therapeutic goals provides tactical decision support, enabling clinicians to adjust care as needed. Monthly or quarterly feedback on aggregated goal achievement for all patients on a clinical pathway provides strategic decision support, enabling clinicians and managers to identify problems with supposed "best practices" and to test hypotheses about solutions. Work is underway at Vanderbilt University Medical Center to implement feedback loops in care and management processes and to evaluate the effects.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA. judy.ozbolt@vanderbilt.edu
authors.forename: Judy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ozbolt
authors.forename: Asli
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ozdas
authors.forename: Lemuel R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Waitman
authors.forename: Janis B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Grace V
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Brennan
authors.forename: Randolph A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D000046:Academic Medical Centers; D003144:Communication Barriers; D019091:Critical Pathways; D003491:Cybernetics; D020000:Decision Support Systems, Clinical; D003660:Decision Support Systems, Management; D005246:Feedback; D006801:Humans; D005791:Patient Care; D010346:Patient Care Management / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D013714:Tennessee