Optimizing Hospital Wide Patient Scheduling

Diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) are used in hospitals for the reimbursement of inpatient services. The assignment of a patient to a DRG can be distinguished into billing- and operations-driven DRG classification. The topic of this monograph is operations-driven DRG classification, in which DRGs of inpatients are employed to improve contribution margin-based patient scheduling decisions. In the first part, attribute selection and classification techniques are evaluated in order to increase early DRG classification accuracy. Employing mathematical programming, the hospital-wide flow of elective patients is modelled taking into account DRGs, clinical pathways and scarce hospital resources. The results of the early DRG classification part reveal that a small set of attributes is sufficient in order to substantially improve DRG classification accuracy as compared to the current approach of many hospitals. Moreover, the results of the patient scheduling part reveal that the contribution margin can be increased as compared to current practice.

According to Transforming Health Care Scheduling and Access, long waits for treatment are a function of the disjointed manner in which most health systems have evolved to accommodate the needs and the desires of doctors and administrators, rather than those of patients. The result is a health care system that deploys its most valuable resource--highly trained personnel--inefficiently, leading to an unnecessary imbalance between the demand for appointments and the supply of open appointments. This study makes the case that by using the techniques of systems engineering, new approaches to management, and increased patient and family involvement, the current health care system can move forward to one with greater focus on the preferences of patients to provide convenient, efficient, and excellent health care without the need for costly investment. Transforming Health Care Scheduling and Access identifies best practices for making significant improvements in access and system-level change. This report makes recommendations for principles and practices to improve access by promoting efficient scheduling. This study will be a valuable resource for practitioners to progress toward a more patient-focused "How can we help you today?" culture.

Across the country ambulances are turned away from emergency departments (EDs) and patients are waiting hours and sometimes days to be admitted to a hospital room. Hospitals are finding it hard to get specialist physicians to come to treat emergency patients. Our EDs demand a new way of thinking. They are not at a tipping point; they are at a break

Medical informatics is a field which continues to evolve with developments and improvements in foundational methods, applications, and technology, constantly offering opportunities for supporting the customization of healthcare to individual patients. This book presents the proceedings of the 16th World Congress of Medical and Health Informatics (MedInfo2017), held in Hangzhou, China, in August 2017, which also marked the 50th anniversary of the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA). The central theme of MedInfo2017 was "Precision Healthcare through Informatics", and the scientific program was divided into five tracks: connected and digital health; human data science; human, organizational, and social aspects; knowledge management and quality; and safety and patient outcomes. The 249 accepted papers and 168 posters included here span the breadth and depth of sub-disciplines in biomedical and health informatics, such as clinical informatics; nursing informatics; consumer health informatics; public health informatics; human factors in healthcare; bioinformatics; translational informatics; quality and safety; research at the intersection of biomedical and health informatics; and precision medicine. The book will be of interest to all those who wish to keep pace with advances in the science, education, and practice of biomedical and health informatics worldwide.

Effective healthcare delivery is a vital concern for citizens and communities across the globe. The numerous facets of this industry require constant re-evaluation and optimization of management techniques. The Handbook of Research on Healthcare Administration and Management is a pivotal reference source for the latest scholarly material on emerging strategies and methods for delivering optimal healthcare opportunities and solutions. Highlighting issues relating to decision making, process optimization, and technological applications, this book is ideally designed for policy makers, administrators, students, professionals, and researchers interested in achieving superior healthcare solutions.

The development of better processes to provide proper healthcare has enhanced contemporary society. By implementing effective collaborative strategies, this ensures proper quality and instruction for both the patient and medical practitioners. Health Care Delivery and Clinical Science: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications is a comprehensive reference source for the latest scholarly material on emerging strategies and methods for delivering optimal healthcare and examines the latest techniques and methods of clinical science. Highlighting a range of pertinent topics such as medication management, health literacy, and patient engagement, this multi-volume book is ideally designed for professionals, practitioners, researchers, academics, and graduate students interested in healthcare delivery and clinical science.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Medicine in Europe, AIME 2009, held in Verona, Italy in July 2009. The 24 revised long papers and 36 revised short papers presented together with 2 invited talks were carefully reviewed and selected from 140 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on agent-based systems, temporal data mining, machine learning and knowledge discovery, text mining, natural language processing and generation, ontologies, decision support systems, applications of AI-based image processing techniques, protocols and guidelines, as well as workflow systems.

This book is dedicated to improving healthcare through reducing delays experienced by patients. With an interdisciplinary approach, this new edition, divided into five sections, begins by examining healthcare as an integrated system. Chapter 1 provides a hierarchical model of healthcare, rising from departments, to centers, regions and the “macro system.” A new chapter demonstrates how to use simulation to assess the interaction of system components to achieve performance goals, and Chapter 3 provides hands-on methods for developing process models to identify and remove bottlenecks, and for developing facility plans. Section 2 addresses crowding and the consequences of delay. Two new chapters (4 and 5) focus on delays in emergency departments, and Chapter 6 then examines medical outcomes that result from waits for surgeries. Section 3 concentrates on management of demand. Chapter 7 presents breakthrough strategies that use real-time monitoring systems for continuous improvement. Chapter 8 looks at the patient appointment system, particularly through the approach of advanced access. Chapter 9 concentrates on managing waiting lists for surgeries, and Chapter 10 examines triage outside of emergency departments, with a focus on allied health programs Section 4 offers analytical tools and models to support analysis of patient flows. Chapter 11 offers techniques for scheduling staff to match patterns in patient demand. Chapter 12 surveys the literature on simulation modeling, which is widely used for both healthcare design and process improvement. Chapter 13 is new and demonstrates the use of process mapping to represent a complex regional trauma system. Chapter 14 provides methods for forecasting demand for healthcare on a region-wide basis. Chapter 15 presents queueing theory as a method for modeling waits in healthcare, and Chapter 16 focuses on rapid delivery of medication in the event of a catastrophic event. Section 5 focuses on achieving change. Chapter 17 provides a diagnostic for assessing the state of a hospital and using the state assessment to select improvement strategies. Chapter 18 demonstrates the importance of optimizing care as patients transition from one care setting to the next. Chapter 19 is new and shows how to implement programs that improve patient satisfaction while also improving flow. Chapter 20 illustrates how to evaluate the overall portfolio of patient diagnostic groups to guide system changes, and Chapter 21 provides project management tools to guide the execution of patient flow projects.