Beyond moral imperatives: Nash's equilibrium and the benefits of collaboration

Background: What are the merits of cooperation? Why should we as individuals or representatives of a given organization risk our resources for the common good? The typical response is to cite a moral imperative – cooperation is something we OUGHT to do. Yet, this justification assumes cooperation's intrinsic value. With increasing healthcare privatization, altruistic arguments are increasingly difficult to support, creating a need for a paradigm shift. Methods: Game theory and its rules of simultaneous interdependence are applied to a healthcare case study, a community serviced by two healthcare systems. The results of an independent needs assessment are entered into a decision matrix and the relative payoffs assessed. The concept of Nash's equilibrium is then introduced to account for dynamic stasis – the means by which the status quo or existing agreements become self-enforcing – and cooperation enters the model as an essential component of beneficial change. Analysis: Basic game theory modeling and the mathematics of Nash's equilibrium support the need for cooperation. Cooperation is not simply a virtue, but a component of enlightened self-interest for any healthcare organization. In light of these findings, the community care network is discussed as the ideal embodiment of cooperation in the healthcare context.