Introduction to Systems Thinking

• Systems thinking is an approach to understanding problems, processes, or organisations by looking at the whole system rather than the individual parts in isolation.

• It recognises that elements within a system are interconnected and that changes in one part can create a ripple effective across the entire system.

Why it's important

• When an incident occurs, the approach taken to investigate the cause and identify solutions should be tailored to suit the type of system.

• Queensland Health is a complex system and a linear approach to problem solving may not result in long term solutions.