APPLICATION OF INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING IN HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS
Abstract
Engineering concepts have been applied in healthcare systems. Particularly, industrial engineering plays a significant role in the maintenance of modern healthcare systems. Medical practitioners and managers should appreciate the significance of employing practical methods in decision-making. The objective of this paper is to tie industrial engineering concepts to healthcare delivery. This involves the application of systems modelling in healthcare management. The paper is divided into sections that cover various aspects of the topic. The human capital model is expressed through an equation. This is then followed by a summary of underlying facts. The compilation is concluded with a recap of the topics covered by the paper.
Keywords: Healthcare systems, modelling, engineering.
Introduction
Recently, governments have acknowledged the importance of engineering design in the implementation of healthcare models. Concerning this, engineers have been involved in the maintenance of healthy populations through the application of technical concepts. Health services are provided efficiently when particular health needs of populations are met. This involves various aspects of healthcare delivery that ranges from scheduling to the creation of health plans that safeguard the interests of future generations. Most engineering disciplines are necessary for any healthcare system (Jacobson, 2006). An important subject is healthcare engineering that has helped save many lives. Through this approach, modern technology is used to manipulate disease states and to restore the health of patients. The healthcare industry has grown significantly. This is due to a rise in innovative strategies used to manage health institutions. The field of engineering has played a significant role in this phenomenon; it has revolutionized human healthcare systems.
Background
The delivery of healthcare services can be understood through the concept of event-based systems. Health services operate whenever frameworks are used to create events. This concerns processes and actions that occur against the variation of time. Systems modelling is necessary in healthcare. It involves the identification of strategies designed in mathematical models. Models are treated with analytical tools that provide answers concerning the behavior of healthcare systems. Systems modelling differs from the research methods involving medical research. Various steps are applicable in the improvement of health care systems. First, project management models concern the variables that affect the implementation of project tasks in hospital projects. This is evident during patient analysis by the use of critical path methods. Engineering economics models are employed in the financial management of healthcare projects. This is used to ensure the cost-effectiveness of operations in the correction of health-related problems. Statistical models are also important in this context (Sittig & Singh, 2010). They surround the relationships between various forms of data in evaluating process control goals in hospitals. Examples of such tools include regression and statistical control systems.
Another model applied in healthcare systems includes the stochastic process model. They are used to substantiate the performance measures of healthcare systems in understanding the status of health institutions (Kao, 1974). This creates a ground for the creation and implementation of decision goals that affect the well-being of healthcare establishments. Operations research models useful in the allocation of resources. Concerning this, such tools are used to make decisions concerning the appropriate approaches towards sustainable resource allocation and the determination of economic aspects of resource distribution. Some modelling techniques regard to human factors. Such models can be used to improve the outcomes of human efforts in complex healthcare systems. These tools concern cognitive aspects of human behavior and the manner in which they affect service delivery in healthcare systems. Additionally, this notion is tied to human relationships with information systems in the implementation of health plans.
Process flow models employ engineering design to answer questions concerning the management of tasks in healthcare systems. They cover many problems involved in work coordination and synchronization. Lastly, discrete event simulation has been applied in healthcare systems. This method has been described as the most relevant technique regarding the application of engineering design in healthcare. Particularly, this model is identical to system behavior in time. Simulation models are essential in detecting operational excesses. This aspect makes them practical within the context of clinical experimentation.
Systems engineering techniques apply to the establishment of hospital operations models (Kopach-Konrad, 2007). Many hospitals have sophisticated systems that pose difficulties in management. This concerns many aspects that are attributable to departmental functions that affect daily activities. Additionally, such systems may create financial issues that would influence the sustainability of operational plans. Other complications may be deeply rooted in inefficiencies that would affect the nature of service delivery in the context of health care systems. Because of such problems, the selection of particular engineering models becomes a hard task. An understanding of the models to choose is contingent on the application of a step-wise approach. First, a hospital’s state must be evaluated critically. This surrounds the various aspects that concern staffing and resource allocation (Sittig & Singh, 2010). Additionally, studies should be carried out about the particular events that affect the nature of a hospital overtime. An understanding of the fate of patients is also critical in evaluating the longevity and sustainability of available healthcare plans. Another important consideration is the patients’ influence on the nature of a facility’s resources. This is about the utilization of items designed to restore the health of ailing persons. Lastly, scheduling is examined as a significant determinant of the quality of service delivery. Technology plays a critical role in enabling the monitoring and evaluation functions of reviewing the status of healthcare systems.
Human capital models are critical tools in the management of healthcare systems. Concerning this, they apply a long-term perspective in demystifying healthcare service delivery. This model regards to long term health as a function and model participants as individuals who desire the service. In the model, the function is denoted as a utility function. Human capital emanates from economic concepts. It encompasses the productive knowledge and technical ability that is provided by labor. Economic theories have praised the significance of human capital in the execution of organizational goals. Human capital models are fundamentally vested in the need to optimize the delivery of health care services in populations. Logic sequences are important factors of consideration in this case. The human capital model is solved through an equation. First, Ht is taken to represent a person’s health in time t. This means that a person’s health status can be examined instantaneously. This is quantified at a particular time in their life. The human capital theory provides that individuals desire to maximize their health over time (Blaug, 1976). An individual’s health at time t+1 is related to health at time t by the equation:
Ht+1 = Ht + It − δtHt
Human capital models are vested in the need to create strategies that go a long way in maximizing the health stock of individuals and populations. This is attributable to the economic factors that characterize particular populations.
Healthcare systems modelling and industrial engineering
Systems modelling is relevant to industrial engineering. This is due to the methods used in solving problems. First, models are an explicit representation of real situations. In the field of engineering, designs are used to create impressions about real structures (Sittig & Singh, 2010). This is done to solve theoretical problems that may present themselves through contingencies. For example, an industrial operation is designed to withstand the eventuality of a disaster like a fire. An option would be to create processes and subject them to tests. However, this may lead to destructive outcomes that result in economic losses. Models are therefore used as an alternative to a direct approach to engineering problems. This means that small-scale process replicas would be used to run tests within controlled environments. Additionally, system modelling provides frameworks that answer questions in healthcare delivery. This aspect is also reflected in industrial engineering through the problem-solving aspect of engineering concepts. The upside of modelling is the ability to generate questions that are unique to a particular situation. The creation of models should be done in accordance to problem questions that are in place. Indeed, models simplify real situations and create a pathway for the generation of frameworks that would advance the goals of system performance.
Summary
Modelling is an efficient tool that can be used in the implementation of tasks regarding healthcare systems. Particularly, modelling methods are important in the management of healthcare facilities (Brailsford, 2009). Nevertheless, the variations in modelling techniques pose the problem of limitations. It is important for organizations to consider this notion and manipulate their goals towards the application of sustainable means of achieving proper results. Additionally, the subject of system modelling should be regarded as a process that encompasses the use of various techniques in manipulating different situations. Strict assessment is critical in ensuring the relevance of techniques. Modelers must also incorporate scientific and mathematical paradigms in designing healthcare systems that advance the interests of society. This is augmented by collaborative efforts to integrate expert knowledge borne in the medical fraternity. Such information would give clear guidelines on the right directions to be followed concerning the maintenance of healthcare systems.
Nevertheless, various models can be applied in the creation of healthcare systems. Considerations may be made pertaining the particular goals needed to be achieved. This is also inclusive of the fundamental principles that define a healthcare system. It would be prudent to ensure the relevance of system models in the management of healthcare establishments.
Conclusions
References
Blaug, M. (1976). The empirical status of human capital theory: a slightly jaundiced survey. Journal of economic literature, 14(3), 827-855.
Brailsford, S. C., Harper, P. R., Patel, B., & Pitt, M. (2009). An analysis of the academic literature on simulation and modelling in health care. Journal of simulation, 3(3), 130-140.
Kao, E. P. (1974). Modeling the movement of coronary patients within a hospital by semi-Markov processes. Operations Research, 22(4), 683-699.
Kopach-Konrad, R., Lawley, M., Criswell, M., Hasan, I., Chakraborty, S., Pekny, J., & Doebbeling, B. N. (2007). Applying systems engineering principles in improving health care delivery. Journal of general internal medicine, 22(3), 431-437.
Sittig, D. F., & Singh, H. (2010). A new sociotechnical model for studying health information technology in complex adaptive healthcare systems. Quality and Safety in Health Care, 19(Suppl 3), i68-i74.
