The roots of knowledge-driven universal coverage are in the seminal work of Walter Shewhart almost 100 years ago. That work was taken up by W. Edwards Deming and the US production community in WWII, then the Japanese, then manufacturers worldwide.

In the 1970s, Dell K. Allen organized a manufacturing community in support of higher performance based in part on the classification work of botanists. The classification of things grewn into the classification of processes.

Kenneth Tingey combines these elements into the concept of fluidity and cognitive legitimacy in rehabilitation. This work expands to methods-based management. The 2020 Program for Global Health is a manifestation of that approach.