Understanding the Microsystem

One hundred years ago, most health care was delivered in homes or small offices. While the work of individual doctors, nurses and other professionals remains the foundation of health care delivery, today this care usually occurs within a healthcare system.

This module examines the structure of healthcare systems to understand how the structure and performance of these systems improves or impedes the quality of care patients receive.

We will also consider organizational culture within a healthcare system and its influence on the quality and safety of the system.

You will learn:

• Define a clinical microsystem
• Explain the reasons for focusing quality improvement on the microsystem level
• Identify a high-performing microsystem

Author(s): Bonnie Jerome-D’Emilia, PhD, MPH, RN & John Voss, MD

Estimated time to complete: 20 minutes

Credit hours: .25

Method and Medium: Learners participate in the interactive learning modules by correctly answering multiple choice questions dispersed throughout. Learners will be prompted to try again if a question is answered incorrectly.