Documents Slater, David 2 results

"The most common reaction to suggesting that we could learn valuable lessons from the way the current pandemic has been/ is being handled, is to discourage the attempt; as it is suggested that it can all be done more accurately and authoritatively after the inevitable Public Inquiry (Slater, 2019). On the other hand, a more constructive approach, is to capture and understand the work that was actually done.This would include normal activities, as well as positive adaptations to challenges and failures that may have occurred. Such an approach aimed at improving what worked, rather than blaming people for what went wrong, has the potential to contribute more successfully to controlling the consequences of the current crisis. Such an approach should thus be aimed at detecting and feeding back lessons from emerging and probably unexpected behaviours and helping to design the system to adapt better to counter the effects.
In this paper, we present an overarching framework for a series of projects that are planned to carry out focussed systems-based analysis to generate learning from key aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic response in the United Kingdom."

"Modelling complex sociotechnical systems to try to understand how observed behaviours emerge from a network of interacting, interdependent and interrelated functions is a major challenge. Woods et al (Branlat, 2010), have pointed out that it is difficult to find a satisfactory current methodology. They suggested that perhaps the Functional Resonance Analysis Methodology developed by Hollnagel (Hollnagel, 2012) could be an appropriate approach to try. In Part 1 this approach was employed to build an overall model of the UK's COVID 19 response management system, which was constructed as a framework against which, a series of more detailed analyses of specific health care responses could be examined. This meant being conscious of the bigger picture of simultaneous activities and the dynamic emergence of unexpected developments. At that stage, it was of necessity a model of “work as imagined” from careful official and speculative media sources.
This paper has thus attempted a trial run and has found that it can produce a plausible set of insights, which can explain how the system behaved in practice. With such a serious challenge to Government systems worldwide, in all their advisory, operation and decision-making functions, such insights although provisional, could usefully be incorporated and formalised in the current systems rather than waiting for inquiry endorsed recommendations to be formally considered perhaps some years into the future.

The paper thus sets out a set of conclusions and recommendations, caveated by emphasising the lack of fully authenticated public domain data on which it is based. The main conclusion however is that the current system appears not to have included any of the functions which could have provided the adaptability and resilience required by fast moving emergencies, such as pandemics. The exception noted was the establishment of a parallel, independent vaccine development and delivery function and it is hoped that at least this lesson from the work as done could be recognised as providing the type of adaptability required and incorporated without delay."