Resource Allocation and Outpatient Appointment Scheduling Using Simulation Optimization
Joint Authors
Lin, Carrie Ka Yuk
Ling, Teresa Wai Ching
Yeung, Wing Kwan
Source
Journal of Healthcare Engineering
Issue
Vol. 2017, Issue 2017 (31 Dec. 2017), pp.1-19, 19 p.
Publisher
Hindawi Publishing Corporation
Publication Date
2017-09-25
Country of Publication
Egypt
No. of Pages
19
Main Subjects
Abstract EN
This paper studies the real-life problems of outpatient clinics having the multiple objectives of minimizing resource overtime, patient waiting time, and waiting area congestion.
In the clinic, there are several patient classes, each of which follows different treatment procedure flow paths through a multiphase and multiserver queuing system with scarce staff and limited space.
We incorporate the stochastic factors for the probabilities of the patients being diverted into different flow paths, patient punctuality, arrival times, procedure duration, and the number of accompanied visitors.
We present a novel two-stage simulation-based heuristic algorithm to assess various tactical and operational decisions for optimizing the multiple objectives.
In stage I, we search for a resource allocation plan, and in stage II, we determine a block appointment schedule by patient class and a service discipline for the daily operational level.
We also explore the effects of the separate strategies and their integration to identify the best possible combination.
The computational experiments are designed on the basis of data from a study of an ophthalmology clinic in a public hospital.
Results show that our approach significantly mitigates the undesirable outcomes by integrating the strategies and increasing the resource flexibility at the bottleneck procedures without adding resources.
American Psychological Association (APA)
Lin, Carrie Ka Yuk& Ling, Teresa Wai Ching& Yeung, Wing Kwan. 2017. Resource Allocation and Outpatient Appointment Scheduling Using Simulation Optimization. Journal of Healthcare Engineering،Vol. 2017, no. 2017, pp.1-19.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-1181321
Modern Language Association (MLA)
Lin, Carrie Ka Yuk…[et al.]. Resource Allocation and Outpatient Appointment Scheduling Using Simulation Optimization. Journal of Healthcare Engineering No. 2017 (2017), pp.1-19.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-1181321
American Medical Association (AMA)
Lin, Carrie Ka Yuk& Ling, Teresa Wai Ching& Yeung, Wing Kwan. Resource Allocation and Outpatient Appointment Scheduling Using Simulation Optimization. Journal of Healthcare Engineering. 2017. Vol. 2017, no. 2017, pp.1-19.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-1181321
Data Type
Journal Articles
Language
English
Notes
Includes bibliographical references
Record ID
BIM-1181321