Recently the publication rate of papers proposing the use of systems thinking to improve health system performance has grown exponentially. Very few of these publications, however, provide examples of practical application. This gap between theory and practice reflects two key issues. First, the difficulty of facilitating the required cross-sector collaborations. Second, the lack of a high-level model of the causal structure of a typical health delivery system.

In this chapter we point out that System Dynamics provides an accessible shared language capable of facilitating effective cross-sector communication and engagement. In Section 2.2 we briefly describe the System Dynamics concepts and tools that are used to support the case studies presented in Chapters 4–12 of this book.

We conclude, in Section 2.3, by outlining the approach taken in Sections 2 and 3 of the book. Attention is focused on understanding the Malaysian health system, leading to the construction of a generic health system model. Such a model, with its high-level focus on the interactions between the health system building blocks, is needed to ensure that cross-sector research is both comprehensive and coherent.