PROPOSING A NOVEL CONCEPTUAL MODEL FOR THE MEDICAL CLINIC WITHIN A MID-SIZED HOSPITAL THROUGH THE APPLICATION OF SOFT SYSTEM METHODOLOGY (SSM)

Abstract

The paper presents a structured approach to address decision-making challenges within the medical clinic service of a mid-sized hospital located in Brazil, using Soft System Methodology (SSM). Its application extends to the medical clinic, a previously unexplored domain within the hospital. Within this context, we introduce a novel conceptual framework for healthcare, wherein we integrate Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) tool into SSM framework. The overarching goal is to rectify the pivotal issue of excessive workload allocation among the medical clinic staff. The developed model effectively addresses this issue by optimizing task allocation. It achieves this by designating primary and auxiliary nursing staff for specific sets of tasks, taking into consideration the necessity for displacement and ensuring a fair distribution of workloads. Furthermore, our model incorporates PDCA into the implementation phase of SSM, thereby establishing a mechanism for ongoing improvement in the initial equilibrium achieved in terms of staff deployment and task distribution.