Levelling bed occupancy: reconfiguring surgery schedules via simulation

International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance,Volume 31, Issue 7, Page 864-876, August 2018. Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present simulation modelling to reconfigure a 700-bed Hong Kong hospital ’s master surgery schedule (MSS), aiming to improve patient flow, capacity management and resource allocation through levelling bed occupancy within the hospital. Design/methodology/approach A discrete-event simulation model was developed to understand how changes to the MSS would affect bed occ upancy, thereby providing business intelligence for short- and long-term hospital planning. A decision tool was subsequently developed for hospital managers to test different scenarios. Findings Simulation modelling showed that significant bed occupancy levelling could be achieved through small an d practicable changes to the MSS. Optimisation routines conducted using the simulation model then gave additional insights into how the schedule should be revamped for the long term. Practical implications The authors show how operations research methods are useful for guiding hospital operational planning. The authors show that a data-driven and evidence-based model enables hospital managers to critically explore various scheduling changes, while also providing a scientific common ground for discussion among important stakeholders. It is a crucial step forward when adopting advanced analyti cs for Hong Kong hospital operational planning. Originality/value The authors provi...
Source: International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance - Category: Health Management Source Type: research