De Bono E
Mamaroneck, New York, USA: The International Center for Creative Thinking; 1985

This book is about improving communication and decision making in groups. The author presents a structure to make thinking more effective when decisions must be made: group members use different "thinking hats" to look at issues and consider ideas from various perspectives. Groups of people can role-play with the "six thinking hats" using case studies and examples in the book.

Cleveland WS
Summit, New Jersey, USA: Hobart Press; 1994

The second edition features new methods and principles for the visual display of data in science and technology. These methods present powerful tools for data analysis and communication, suggesting new ways to graphically display data to more effectively communicate about what the data are showing.

Brown J, Duguid P
Boston, Massachusetts, USA: Harvard Business School Press; 2000

Based on recent research and examples from a wide range of organizations, the authors make a compelling argument about the vital role humans will continue to play in the world of information and technology. This book discusses both the potential and the limitations of technology, and demonstrates how the contributions of individuals, communities, organizations, and institutions are vital elements in making the best possible use of technology in everyday life.

Delbanco, TL. Enriching the doctor-patient relationship by inviting the patient's perspective. Annals of Internal Medicine. 1992;116: 414-417.

A study of the physician-patient relationship from the patient's perspective shows that patients want a competent physician who treats them with dignity and respect; explains their sickness and how it will affect their lives; focuses on their pain, physical discomfort, and functional disabilities; and cares about what happens to them and their family.

Bisognano MA. Best practices in quality leadership. Quality Letter for Healthcare Leaders. 1995;16-22.

By employing a number of strategies, such as benchmarking, implementing practice guidelines, and other tactics to make optimal use of existing information, and establishing formal learning plans, health care leaders can effect significant and continuing quality improvements within their facilities.

Berwick DM. Eleven worthy aims for clinical leadership of health system reform. Journal of the American Medical Association. 1994;272(10):797-802.

A call to clinicians to play a central role in improving health care and adopt an agenda of 11 specific, research-based changes.

Berwick DM. Continuous improvement as an ideal in health care. New England Journal of Medicine. 1989;320(1):53-56.

A classic, one of the first published calls for systems thinking in clinical care.

Casey S
Santa Barbara, California, USA: Aegean Publishing Company; 1993

A collection of fascinating stories of events gone awry due to flawed design, technology problems, or human factors, and how the people involved responded. In some cases, but not all, they were able to avoid a tragic outcome.

Provost L, Leddick S. How to take multiple measures to get a complete picture of organizational performance. National Productivity Review. 1993;477-490.

This article gives a good and practical overview of measure selection, with an emphasis on selecting several useful measures to improve assessment of results.

Plsek P. Collaborating across organizational boundaries to improve the quality of care. American Journal of Infection Control. 1997;25(2):85-95.

This article is a thoughtful and thorough review of inter-organizational collaborative improvement with many examples from across the United States.