Thinking differently

NewhamCat'sEye Review: How did thinking about an umbrella lead a pathology department to revolutionise its processing computer? How did meditating on a jellyfish solve the problem of hospital visitors not washing their hands? Thinking Differently answers these questions, and shows how you too can use innovative methods to solve problems. Encouraging the reader to draw inspiration from any sphere of life, including those unconnected with healthcare, it highlights methods first for generating ideas, and then for testing each to decide which are worth implementing. Packed with examples of how this innovative approach has produced dividends in healthcare organisations, Thinking Differently argues that the way to produce good ideas is to come up with many and then discard the bad ones. It also encourages ideas that initially appear outlandish, because often these prove to be the best. The book is less good at advising busy NHS workers on how to find the time to use the tools described, but when it comes to offering up practical methods for generating ideas and then seeing these through to implementation, Thinking Differently surely takes some beating. Sam Smith (Senior Project manager, STAR)

Binder format with plastic covers