D458
Introduction to Systems Thinking for Health Professionals
XBM1 TASK 3
Analyzes Complex Problems
(Passed First Attempt)
Western Governors University
, Step 1. Complete an Iceberg tool for this case study.
1. What are the key events in this case study? Administrators representing University Hospital Central,
University Hospital East, and University Hospital West met to discuss the ongoing problem of
emergency room patient backlogs, which all three hospitals are experiencing. University Hospital
Central is located in a densely populated area near a major highway, making it the busiest hospital of all
three. Increasing ER capacity in all three hospitals is out of the question because it is more than the
budget and would take a long time. They increased the ER capacity of the University Hospital Central
since it is the fastest and most affordable way to address the situation. When the other two hospitals
reach capacity, the ER-bound ambulance patients are diverted to University Hospital Central. This
works short-term because the two hospitals increasingly divert ER patients to the University Central
Hospital which then becomes backlogged again with ER patients. The two hospitals, University Hospital
East and University Hospital West, also become backlogged. Consequently, all three hospitals’ patients'
health is impacted negatively, and the hospitals experience higher mortality rates.
2. What patterns do you notice in the key events of this case study? The influx of ER Patients to all
three hospitals overwhelms ER patient backlogs despite the administrators’ attempt to resolve the issue
by increasing the ER patient capacity with more beds and medical staff.
3. What structure(s) explain the patterns of events in this case study? Three hospitals, University
Hospital Central, University Hospital East, and University Hospital West, are experiencing ER patient
backlogs. University Hospital Central is located in a densely populated area near a major highway,
making it the busiest hospital of all three. Therefore, University Hospital Central’s ER capacity was
increased. Hospital administrators turned to other issues, thinking the problem had been solved, but it
had not. The solution was temporary and helped in the short term; the other two hospitals relied on
diverting inbound ER ambulance patients to University Hospital Central, and the backlog issue began to
climb again. Before long, all three hospitals had ER patient backlogs.
This study source was downloaded by 100000902171055 from CourseHero.com on 11-18-2025 15:59:52 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/235337913/Analyzing-ER-Patient-Backlogs-in-Hospitals/
Introduction to Systems Thinking for Health Professionals
XBM1 TASK 3
Analyzes Complex Problems
(Passed First Attempt)
Western Governors University
, Step 1. Complete an Iceberg tool for this case study.
1. What are the key events in this case study? Administrators representing University Hospital Central,
University Hospital East, and University Hospital West met to discuss the ongoing problem of
emergency room patient backlogs, which all three hospitals are experiencing. University Hospital
Central is located in a densely populated area near a major highway, making it the busiest hospital of all
three. Increasing ER capacity in all three hospitals is out of the question because it is more than the
budget and would take a long time. They increased the ER capacity of the University Hospital Central
since it is the fastest and most affordable way to address the situation. When the other two hospitals
reach capacity, the ER-bound ambulance patients are diverted to University Hospital Central. This
works short-term because the two hospitals increasingly divert ER patients to the University Central
Hospital which then becomes backlogged again with ER patients. The two hospitals, University Hospital
East and University Hospital West, also become backlogged. Consequently, all three hospitals’ patients'
health is impacted negatively, and the hospitals experience higher mortality rates.
2. What patterns do you notice in the key events of this case study? The influx of ER Patients to all
three hospitals overwhelms ER patient backlogs despite the administrators’ attempt to resolve the issue
by increasing the ER patient capacity with more beds and medical staff.
3. What structure(s) explain the patterns of events in this case study? Three hospitals, University
Hospital Central, University Hospital East, and University Hospital West, are experiencing ER patient
backlogs. University Hospital Central is located in a densely populated area near a major highway,
making it the busiest hospital of all three. Therefore, University Hospital Central’s ER capacity was
increased. Hospital administrators turned to other issues, thinking the problem had been solved, but it
had not. The solution was temporary and helped in the short term; the other two hospitals relied on
diverting inbound ER ambulance patients to University Hospital Central, and the backlog issue began to
climb again. Before long, all three hospitals had ER patient backlogs.
This study source was downloaded by 100000902171055 from CourseHero.com on 11-18-2025 15:59:52 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/235337913/Analyzing-ER-Patient-Backlogs-in-Hospitals/
