ISQua’s North American Community of Practice (NACOP) recently welcomed healthcare quality professionals from around the world for a webinar on Evidence-Informed Process Mapping Strategies, presented by Adam Thompson and moderated by Dr Bruce Agins.
The session explored how process mapping — a widely used quality improvement tool — can be strengthened through more structured, evidence-informed approaches that improve accuracy, stakeholder engagement, and system understanding.
Opening the session, moderator Bruce Agins introduced Adam Thompson as an experienced quality improvement practitioner, practice facilitator, and educator, with extensive international experience supporting healthcare improvement initiatives.
Throughout the webinar, Adam emphasised that effective process mapping is not simply about creating flowcharts, but about developing a shared understanding of how care is truly delivered within complex healthcare systems.
“Constructing a process map requires understanding a process in increasing detail while also gaining alignment amongst diverse stakeholders,” Adam explained during the session.
The webinar highlighted how healthcare organisations often rely on traditional mapping approaches that can oversimplify systems or fail to capture the realities of day-to-day practice. Participants were encouraged to use more nuanced mapping techniques — including block diagrams and task diagrams — to better visualise workflows, identify variation, and uncover opportunities for improvement.
A central theme of the discussion was the importance of involving frontline staff and diverse stakeholders in the mapping process to build a shared mental model of the system under review. Adam also explored how evidence-informed process mapping can support implementation planning, reduce inefficiencies, and strengthen improvement initiatives across healthcare settings.
The session reflected NACOP’s ongoing commitment to sharing practical, evidence-based approaches to healthcare quality improvement and implementation science.
ISQua extends its thanks to Adam Thompson for sharing his expertise and to Bruce Agins for moderating the discussion.
To learn more about NACOP and upcoming webinars, visit ISQua’s North American Community of Practice page.
A recording of this webinar and a copy of Adam’s PowerPoint slides are available in the Resource Section of ISQua’s Community Dashboard. This resource can be accessed by ISQua Members or Guests.
To find out more about ISQua Membership, and to sign up, please visit – https://isqua.org/membership/
