Improvement Science: Conceptual and Theoretical Foundations for its Application to Healthcare Quality Improvement Portela, M. C., Lima, S. M. L., Martins, M., & Travassos, C. (2016). Improvement Science: Conceptual and theoretical foundations for its application to healthcare quality improvement / Ciencia de la Mejora del Cuidado de la Salud: bases conceptuales y teóricas para su aplicación en la mejoría del cuidado de salud / Ciência da Melhoria do Cuidado de Saúde: bases conceituais e teóricas para a sua aplicação na melhoria do cuidado de saúde. Cadernos de Saúde Pública, 32(suppl 2). doi:10.1590/0102-311X00105815.
The development and study of healthcare quality improvement interventions have been reshaped, moving from more intuitive approaches, dominated by biomedical vision and premised on easy transferability, to gradually acknowledge the need for more planning and systematization, with greater incorporation of the social sciences and enhancement of the role of context. This article highlights that Improvement Science has been established, with a conceptual and methodological framework for such studies.