Assignment, Design thinking for innovation

Challenge  I work as a psychologist in an institution that offers treatments for several disorders. In the  Netherlands it’s the insurance companies who pay for treatments and hence external  auditing takes place in order to establish the quality of the programs.  The psychologists within the eating disorders treatment team were asked to provide  information on the specific treatment from beginning to end, including decision making  procedures throughout the program.    Selection  A lot of information was to be included in this project, and we decided to walk through the  whole treatment, in order to identify all stages of the program and moments of decision  making.   I was leading the project and gathered information from every team member. I decided to  make a mind-map, clustering all related topics. Making the whole process visible on paper  helped me to identify missing steps, and it provided us with new questions about ‘why’ we  do things the way we do them.   Since the mind map was so helpful, I converted the information to a flow chart. I used the  visualisation tool, in order to create a good overview of the treatment process, at first for  our own clarification, and eventually to actually use for the audit.  The visualisation tool is  very helpful when it comes to providing insight in the mechanisms of a company or specific  department, as it shows all the steps instead of having to read about every possible action.    Application  I used several criteria in order to create a concise, yet well-described flow chart. The chart  should fit an A4 paper, the decision making process should include yes/ no questions in  order for every step to be clear and not leave any open ends. Finally, the chart also had to  include inclusion/exclusion criteria for treatment, as well as the tree main parts of the  treatment (intake, treatment and exit). I have added the flow chart as appendix; due to  privacy of the company I have added a raw set up of the chart, just for this assignment.    Insight  Using the visualisation tool literally showed the team and me which steps weren’t well  defined and were in need of extra discussion. In the end, this approach wasn’t just useful for  the audit, but also for our clinical practice. It helped us to inform patients and referrers  better about why we make certain decisions, which allows referrers to make more accurate  referrals and it prevents patients from being on our waiting list – based on a false referral.     Approach  I think it really depends on the project, which design tool is best used. The next time that I

have describe a process, I’m likely to use the visualisation tool again. I think that this way of  displaying a process to an external party, such as the insurance company, shows that we  make well- considered choices and recommendations, based on research  and available  resources in our company. E.g. we can demonstrate – with this chart-  why we refer people  with severe underweight to a hospital, since we don’t have the tools to provide medical care  that comes with this condition.  One of the things that I have learned in this course, besides knowing which tool to use, is to  not just rely on our own assumptions and knowledge, but involve all stakeholders in order to  start a good discussion, which will form the base of the innovation process.     Appendix; Flow chart (set up)


Assignment , Design thinking for innovation Challenge I work as a psychologist in an institution that offers treatments for several disorders . In the Netherlands it ’s the insurance companies who pay for treatments and hence external auditing takes place in order to establish the quality of the programs . The psychologists within the eating disorders treatment team were asked to provide information on the specific treatment from beginning to end , including decision making procedures throughout the program . Selection A lot of information was to be included in this project , and we decided to walk through the whole treatment , in order to identify all stages of the program and moments of decision making . I was leading the project and gathered information from every team member . I decided to make a mind - map , clustering all related topics . Making the whole process visible on paper helped me to identify missing steps , and it provided us with new questions about ‘ why ’ we do things the way we do them . Since the mind map was so helpful , I converted the information to a flow chart . I used the visualisation tool , in order to create a good overview of the treatment process , at first for our own clarification , and eventually to actually use for the audit . The visualisation tool is very helpful when it comes to providing insight in the mechanisms of a company or specific department , as it shows all the steps instead of having to read about every possible action . Application I used several criteria in order to create a concise , yet well - described flow chart . The chart should fit an A4 paper , the decision making process should include yes/ no questions in order for every step to be clear and not leave any open ends . Finally , the chart also had to include inclusion / exclusion criteria for treatment , as well as the tree main parts of the treatment ( intake , treatment and exit ) . I have added the flow chart as appendix ; due to privacy of the company I have added a raw set up of the chart , just for this assignment . Insight Using the visualisation tool literally showed the team and me which steps were n’t well defined and were in need of extra discussion . In the end , this approach was n’t just useful for the audit , but also for our clinical practice . It helped us to inform patients and referrers better about why we make certain decisions , which allows referrers to make more accurate referrals and it prevents patients from being on our waiting list – based on a false referral . Approach I think it really depends on the project , which design tool is best used . The next time that I have describe a process , I ’m likely to use the visualisation tool again . I think that this way of displaying a process to an external party , such as the insurance company , shows that we make well- considered choices and recommendations , based on research and available resources in our company . E.g. we can demonstrate – with this chart- why we refer people with severe underweight to a hospital , since we do n’t have the tools to provide medical care that comes with this condition . One of the things that I have learned in this course , besides knowing which tool to use , is to not just rely on our own assumptions and knowledge , but involve all stakeholders in order to start a good discussion , which will form the base of the innovation process . Appendix ; Flow chart ( set up )