17 accepted papers
This paper presents a unified framework for transient analysis of cascaded M/M/c/K networks with split and merge under multiple service policies, including first-come-first-served (FCFS), priority, percentage, and circulate. A history-buffer mechanism is introduced to preserve temporal arrival compo
Operating room (OR) is a critical and costly asset in hospitals. Effective management is crucial for cost reduction, improved patient outcomes, and resource optimization in ORs. To bolster operational efficiency, numerous hospitals have established day surgery centers for surgeries not requiring an
Healthcare accessibility is crucial in public medical services, and has become one of center issues of healthcare services. Enabling fair and quick access to healthcare services is of critical importance for all populations, particularly for the elderly people in metropolitan cities. In this paper,
To reduce energy consumption, green hospitals have received increasing research attention. In this letter, a patient flow prediction-based approach is introduced to control air conditioning system for energy savings in green hospitals. The patient occupancy in various hospital units is predicted thr
Improving workflow efficacy in operating rooms (OR) is of significant importance for hospital management. Although extensive studies have been carried out in OR scheduling, efficient methods for workflow analysis are missing in current literature. To bridge this gap, in this letter, a Markov chain m
Green manufacturing is of significant importance to meet the strategic goals of carbon peak and carbon neutral. Reducing energy consumption in manufacturing plays a critical role to achieve green objectives, particularly for production lines with energy-intensive setup processes. In this letter, a t
Operating room (OR) is one of the most critical units in a hospital. Managing surgical processes in ORs for better utilization of medical resources, safe delivery of surgical cases, improving patient outcome, and reducing cost, is of significant importance. In this paper, a discrete-event simulation
Manufacturing systems involve machines and people. Both productivity and ergonomic performance are of significant importance in manufacturing. However, there is no integrated model to analyze them simultaneously. To bridge this gap, a unified model is introduced to evaluate the productivity and ergo
The rapid development of machine learning (ML) technology has introduced substantial impact on ergonomics research in manufacturing. Numerous studies and practices have been carried out to apply ML techniques to address manufacturing ergonomics issues, which has brought extensive opportunities as we
This paper introduces a transition flow model to study fall-related emergency department (ED) revisits for elderly patients with diabetes. Five diabetes classes are used to classify patients at discharge, within 7-day revisits, and between 8 and 30-day revisits. Analytical formulas to evaluate patie
Transfer of care between multiple units or facilities is of significant importance for patient safety, care quality, and operation efficiency. Such transfers are often referred to as handoffs in hospitals, which need to be carried out timely, safely, and smoothly with accurate information. This pape
This letter presents a case study of workforce allocation in a gear assembly line at a motorcycle powertrain manufacturing plant. Through structural modeling of operators' work flow and part flow, assembly system models with different configurations are developed. Using iterative aggregation techniq
In a hospital's intensive care unit (ICU), multidisciplinary rounding (MDR) is a combination of care management with various healthcare providers from different clinical expertise meeting together to coordinate patient care, establish daily goals, and determine treatment plans. Such meetings require
Closed-loop production lines with constant number of carriers are widely encountered in manufacturing systems. In this letter, we introduce an iteration method to study the key performance indicator (KPI) of closed-loop production lines with geometric reliability machines. First, analysis of two-mac
This letter introduces a causal Bayesian network model to study readmissions reduction for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. The model employs a Bayesian network learning method and adopts domain knowledge. Using this model, we analyze the impacts of critical variables on a pati
Multiproduct systems are becoming more and more prevalent in modern manufacturing. In this paper, we introduce an application study of optimal control policy in a two-product door manufacturing line at an automotive assembly plant. In such a system, two types of doors for sedans and SUVs are produce
Setup times commonly exist in many flexible manufacturing lines to adjust tools and carry out safety and quality check during product changeovers. In this paper, a Markov chain model is introduced to study flexible manufacturing lines with setups. An aggregation-based recursive procedure is introduc