Article

BACKGROUND: To date, little research has been published regarding the effective
and efficient management of resources (beds and staff) in neurorehabilitation,
despite being an expensive service in limited supply. OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate
how mathematical modelling can be used to optimise service delivery, by way of a
case study at a major 21 bed neurorehabilitation unit in the UK. METHODS: An
automated computer program for assigning weekly treatment sessions is developed.
Queue modelling is used to construct a mathematical model of the hospital in
terms of referral submissions to a waiting list, admission and treatment, and
ultimately discharge. This is used to analyse the impact of hypothetical
strategic decisions on a variety of performance measures and costs. The project
culminates in a hybridised model of these two approaches, since a relationship is
found between the number of therapy hours received each week (scheduling output)
and length of stay (queuing model input). RESULTS:
The introduction of the
treatment scheduling program has substantially improved timetable quality
(meaning a better and fairer service to patients) and has reduced employee time
expended in its creation by approximately six hours each week (freeing up time
for clinical work). The queuing model has been used to assess the effect of
potential strategies, such as increasing the number of beds or employing more
therapists. CONCLUSIONS:
The use of mathematical modelling has not only optimised
resources in the short term, but has allowed the optimality of longer term
strategic decisions to be assessed.

Langue : ANGLAIS