Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application

Accurate staff scheduling is crucial in overcoming the problem of mismatch between staffing ratios and demand for health services which can impede smooth patient flow. Patient flow is an important process towards provision of improved quality of service and also improved utilization of hospital res...

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Autores principales:	Kambombo Mtonga, Antoine Gatera, Kayalvizhi Jayavel, Mwawi Nyirenda, Santhi Kumaran
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	PAGEPress Publications 2021
Materias:	Patient queue patient waiting time patient flow staff scheduling single server multiple phase model Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/2e8b0ba35d5d47f5a70b93818e90ef84
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:2e8b0ba35d5d47f5a70b93818e90ef842021-11-15T09:04:06ZAdaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application10.4081/jphr.2021.23472279-90282279-9036https://doaj.org/article/2e8b0ba35d5d47f5a70b93818e90ef842021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.jphres.org/index.php/jphres/article/view/2347https://doaj.org/toc/2279-9028https://doaj.org/toc/2279-9036 Accurate staff scheduling is crucial in overcoming the problem of mismatch between staffing ratios and demand for health services which can impede smooth patient flow. Patient flow is an important process towards provision of improved quality of service and also improved utilization of hospital resources. However, extensive waiting times remains a key source of dissatisfaction with the quality of health care service among patients. With rarely scheduled hospital visits, the in-balance between hospital staffing and health service demand remains a constant challenge in Sub-Saharan Africa. Accurate workload predictions help anticipate financial needs and also aids in strategic planning for the health facility. Using a local health facility for a case study, we investigate problems faced by hospital management in staff scheduling. We apply queuing theory techniques to assess and evaluate the relationship between staffing ratios and waiting times at the facility. Specifically, using patient flow data for a rural clinic in Malawi, we model queue parameters and also approximate recommended staffing ratios to achieve steady state leading to reduced waiting times and consequently, improved service delivery at the clinic. Kambombo MtongaAntoine GateraKayalvizhi JayavelMwawi NyirendaSanthi KumaranPAGEPress PublicationsarticlePatient queuepatient waiting timepatient flowstaff schedulingsingle server multiple phase modelPublic aspects of medicineRA1-1270ENJournal of Public Health Research (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Patient queue patient waiting time patient flow staff scheduling single server multiple phase model Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270
spellingShingle	Patient queue patient waiting time patient flow staff scheduling single server multiple phase model Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 Kambombo Mtonga Antoine Gatera Kayalvizhi Jayavel Mwawi Nyirenda Santhi Kumaran Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application
description	Accurate staff scheduling is crucial in overcoming the problem of mismatch between staffing ratios and demand for health services which can impede smooth patient flow. Patient flow is an important process towards provision of improved quality of service and also improved utilization of hospital resources. However, extensive waiting times remains a key source of dissatisfaction with the quality of health care service among patients. With rarely scheduled hospital visits, the in-balance between hospital staffing and health service demand remains a constant challenge in Sub-Saharan Africa. Accurate workload predictions help anticipate financial needs and also aids in strategic planning for the health facility. Using a local health facility for a case study, we investigate problems faced by hospital management in staff scheduling. We apply queuing theory techniques to assess and evaluate the relationship between staffing ratios and waiting times at the facility. Specifically, using patient flow data for a rural clinic in Malawi, we model queue parameters and also approximate recommended staffing ratios to achieve steady state leading to reduced waiting times and consequently, improved service delivery at the clinic.
format	article
author	Kambombo Mtonga Antoine Gatera Kayalvizhi Jayavel Mwawi Nyirenda Santhi Kumaran
author_facet	Kambombo Mtonga Antoine Gatera Kayalvizhi Jayavel Mwawi Nyirenda Santhi Kumaran
author_sort	Kambombo Mtonga
title	Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application
title_short	Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application
title_full	Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application
title_fullStr	Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application
title_full_unstemmed	Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application
title_sort	adaptive staff scheduling at outpatient department of ntaja health center in malawi - a queuing theory application
publisher	PAGEPress Publications
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/2e8b0ba35d5d47f5a70b93818e90ef84
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Adaptive staff scheduling at Outpatient Department of Ntaja Health Center in Malawi - A queuing theory application

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