It’s Not What You’re Thinking
PRECISION PROBLEM SOLVING WITH NO HYPOTHESIS
It’s Not What You’re Thinking by Dr. Rick van Pelt introduces a revolutionary approach to solving the most pressing challenges in healthcare today. With rising costs, persistent patient safety issues, and caregiver burnout at an all-time high, the current system is failing despite technological advances and tireless efforts by healthcare professionals. Dr. van Pelt’s “Precision Problem Solving” provides a fresh alternative to traditional methods that rely on preconceived hypotheses and subjective assumptions. Instead, this approach focuses on objective observation, comprehensive understanding, and participatory management.
Drawing from over thirty years of experience in clinical practice and leadership, van Pelt critiques the entrenched dysfunctions in healthcare systems. He highlights how fragmented solutions and conflicting perspectives lead to suboptimal outcomes, and why efforts to improve patient safety and reduce burnout continue to fall short. By integrating peer support, interprofessional collaboration, and the principles of high-reliability operating systems, van Pelt offers a practical framework for achieving lasting, transformative change.
The book provides real-world examples of how misaligned problem-solving approaches have perpetuated failure. For instance, the author discusses how healthcare systems have struggled with patient safety initiatives for decades, with little improvement, and explains how traditional methods often exacerbate burnout among frontline workers. By learning to look at problems without bias, and adopting a functional methodology, readers can finally move beyond superficial fixes to create resilient, sustainable solutions.
Perfect for healthcare professionals, administrators, and anyone involved in high-stakes environments, It’s Not What You’re Thinking is an essential guide for those ready to challenge conventional wisdom. With actionable insights and a proven framework for system transformation, this book equips its readers with the tools they need to enact real change in healthcare.
Testimonials…
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“It’s Not What You’re Thinking is the right book at the right time as all leaders work to transform their organizations for current and future success. There’s no way around conflict and differences, finding a way “through” it is what is essential. This book provides ways of thinking and ways of doing to achieve true collaboration.”“Transformational change is difficult to achieve in a complex high volume, high acuity medical environment that involves multiple, intertwined patient care platforms. This became blatantly clear to me as a leader who had tried unsuccessfully to bring about effective, sustainable change to our practice in an effort to improve efficiency and quality outcomes measures for our trauma service. Dr. Van Pelt’s process of maximal engagement of key stakeholders in an iterative and thoughtful approach deconstructed pressure points of conflict and created a practice redesign that resulted in remarkable improvements in key metrics that exceeded our expectations. Improved efficiencies in the care process have increased patient care capacity and eliminated diversion issues, allowing us to remain continuously available for our community in their time of need. It has also resulted in the best quality outcomes measures in the history of our trauma program. Building on this initial success, we have engaged Dr. Van Pelt in other patient care related restructuring processes with similar results. I am glad that Rick has decided to share his process so that others can likewise realize its benefits.”“This book is a guide to developing a vital career in leading and improving health and care. The tools to see and change are applicable across all parts of the patient journey for care and support health care staff in all parts of the system. Dr. van Pelt’s journey is moving as he describes his personal deep learning on patient safety and incorporating a key to best care, asking all patients not only “What’s the matter?” but more importantly, “What matters to you?” Using the tools in this book will guide us to a safer and more patient-focused system, one that we all need.”