What does this research mean for the field?

User-centred design and co-design approaches are most effective for addressing patient-level healthcare challenges, whereas system-level transformation requires systems thinking and structured stakeholder engagement to manage complexity. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.SYNTHESIS. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To identify systems engineering and design methodologies applied to healthcare systems and develop a multi-level conceptual framework guiding methodological selection across micro, meso, and macro levels.

September 2, 2026BMC Health Services ResearchOpen Access

Systems engineering interventions in healthcare services and systems – a systematic review and framework development

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Authors

YYYin Yuan TRThomas Richards JHJi Han

Discussion

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Overview

Systematic review reveals distinct roles for systems engineering and user-centred design in healthcare, highlighting how matching methodologies to delivery levels optimizes systemic outcomes.

Key Points

To identify systems engineering and design methodologies applied to healthcare systems and develop a multi-level conceptual framework guiding methodological selection across micro, meso, and macro levels.
Conducted a systematic review across 11 databases (including Embase, Medline, and Scopus) on November 4, 2024, identifying reviews published within the previous five years.
Identified and synthesized 32 secondary reviews encompassing 1,127 primary studies that applied systems-level engineering and design methodologies in healthcare.
Applied an a priori framework synthesis approach to categorize methodologies and map their interactions across micro (patient), meso (service), and macro (system) tiers.
Service design, improvement, and development emerged as the primary intervention domains, with user-centred design and co-design delivering greatest efficacy for patient-level usability and engagement.
Macro-level systemic change and policy transformation required systems thinking combined with structured stakeholder involvement to manage organizational complexity.
Major evidence gaps persist regarding standardized outcome metrics, real-world implementation evaluations, and adaptability to resource-constrained or culturally diverse healthcare environments.

Cite This Study

Yuan et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a97e2d9c562ede874ec7304 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-026-15420-2

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September 2, 2026BMC Health Services ResearchOpen Access

Systems engineering interventions in healthcare services and systems – a systematic review and framework development

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

YYYin Yuan TRThomas Richards JHJi Han

Discussion

Member takes

Overview

Systematic review reveals distinct roles for systems engineering and user-centred design in healthcare, highlighting how matching methodologies to delivery levels optimizes systemic outcomes.

Key Points

To identify systems engineering and design methodologies applied to healthcare systems and develop a multi-level conceptual framework guiding methodological selection across micro, meso, and macro levels.
Conducted a systematic review across 11 databases (including Embase, Medline, and Scopus) on November 4, 2024, identifying reviews published within the previous five years.
Identified and synthesized 32 secondary reviews encompassing 1,127 primary studies that applied systems-level engineering and design methodologies in healthcare.
Applied an a priori framework synthesis approach to categorize methodologies and map their interactions across micro (patient), meso (service), and macro (system) tiers.
Service design, improvement, and development emerged as the primary intervention domains, with user-centred design and co-design delivering greatest efficacy for patient-level usability and engagement.
Macro-level systemic change and policy transformation required systems thinking combined with structured stakeholder involvement to manage organizational complexity.
Major evidence gaps persist regarding standardized outcome metrics, real-world implementation evaluations, and adaptability to resource-constrained or culturally diverse healthcare environments.

Cite This Study

Yuan et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a97e2d9c562ede874ec7304 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-026-15420-2

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