In the search to develop solid, credible, evidence-based answers to complex questions during an emerging global pandemic, simulation modeling has stepped up to the challenge. More than ever before, governments and healthcare care systems worldwide are relying on simulation to help guide critical decisions.
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ExtendSim dynamic simulation models...
Accurately determine what the demand will be on hospital resources such as doctors, nurses, beds, rooms, equipment, and emergency transport vehicles.
Guide decisions to help quickly adjust to new protocols.
Determine the ability of these resources and systems to provide the level of care required for patients who have contracted COVID-19.
Predict how these systems will perform over time subject to varying rates of COVID-19 cases requiring medical treatment and support.
Help understand the potential trajectory of a pandemic.
Unlock the best possible decisions given the fluidity of pandemics to provide lots of great insights on what to do and not do.
ExtendSim Use in Related Situations
Demand and capacity planning for an Intensive Care Unit examined patient flow pathways in a care unit (Definite MI, Suspected MI, LVF, and Arrhythmia) to investigate the impact of bed blockages in the medical ward on the ability of the unit to deliver its specialized care.
Resource prioritization and allocation in the short and long term when faced with projected increases in clients and the need to expand without over-expanding.
Modeling perioperative systems in a hospital - Utilizing data from a study containing a large dataset (90,000+ records of 30,000+ patients) culled from hospital patient logs and electronic data collection systems, ExtendSim was used to evaluate alternate process flows, policies, staffing, and resource allocation, for the cases flowing through a renovated space. This level of fidelity increased team buy-in and increased certainty that savings estimates would be real, providing an accurate understanding of resource allocation as it relates to revenue. The effort’s positive outcome showed the importance of involving nursing staff and facility administration with the healthcare planning, architecture, and simulation modeling team. The result is improved patient care and patient flow with better use of personnel and other resources.
ExtendSim was used to support the operational and functional design of a national distribution center for the leading pharmaceuticals distributor in Argentina (more that 150 million units per year, at a value of $1 billion). This operation stands out for its level of innovation and aggressive use of simulation technology in support of order picking operations and routing of orders.
Feasibility model of North Hampshire Hospital's Emergency Assessment Centre in the United Kingdom evaluated staffing requirements, beds, number of cubicles, overall size of the facilities, and future growth. Surveyors and engineers used model results to plan the facility.
Case Studies
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Simulation Approach in Queue Management at Supermarkets in the COVID-19 Era Jacek Zabawa, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology Presented at the 35th IBIMA Conference, Seville, Spain April 2020 ![]() |
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Overcoming Challenges in Hybrid Simulation Design and Experiment Jacek Zabawa and Bozena Mielczarek, Faculty of Computer Science and Management, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology ISAT 2018 -- 39th International Conference ![]() |
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Using Simulation to Design an Emergency Department, Architecturally, Operationally, & Clinically Robin Clark, QMT Group; Susan O'Hara, O'Hara Healthcare Consultants; and Steve Langston, RLF Architects Healthcare Systems Process Improvement Conference 2015 ![]() To accomplish this task in an evidence-based way, a simulation model was developed using ExtendSim. This approach helped the clinical, managerial, and facility staff to not just understand their existing department workflow but also to provide them the opportunity to test trans-disciplinary scenarios to guide the design of the new emergency department. Furthermore it provided the client with the statistics to evaluate the impact a new Chest Pain & General Observation Center and Results Waiting Lounge would have on their entire system. ![]() |
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Planning Intensive Care Unit Design Using Computer Simulation Modeling - Optimizing Integration of Clinical, Operational, and Architectural Requirements Susan O’Hara, RN, MPH Critical Care Nursing Quarterly, March 2014 -- Volume 37 Number 1, Pages 67 - 82 ![]() A simulation model can guide the team through a more efficient planning process and will offer solutions that are not static. These dynamic solutions mirror the changing climate of health care, offering opportunities to predict the impact of future changes in clinical care, operations, and architecture in the ICU. ![]() |
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Simulation Modeling to Optimize Healthcare Delivery in an Outpatient Clinic Shaghayegh Norouzzadeh, Lawrence Carter, Nancy Riebling, Joseph Conigliaro, and Martin E. Doerfler North Shore-LIJ ![]() ![]() |
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The Use of Simulation Modeling in Healthcare Planning - Ambulatory Surgery Unit Susan O'Hara, O'Hara HealthCare Consultants; Mark Sullivan, Mark Sullivan Architects; and Henry Bell, Smoky Mountain Simulation Services 36th Conference on Winter Simulation Healthcare architecture design of a new ambulatory surgery unit explores the relationship between the number of operating rooms and recovery beds, the number of cases and the phases of recovery, bed capacity, staffing, and waiting room seat requirements as each affected the design. Model results allowed time for variations in the design to meet the client's needs before the project was built. Furthermore, the simulation shows the positive outcome of combining the experience of three professional disciplines: healthcare planning, architecture, and simulation modeling for nurses, doctors and patients of the new ambulatory surgery unit. ![]() |
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Using Simulation to Improve the Patient Pre-Admission Testing Design Process Susan O'Hara, O'Hara HealthCare Consultants; Dave Krahl, Imagine That, Inc.; Mark Sullivan, Mark Sullivan Architects; and Henry Bell, Smoky Mountain Simulation Services Winter Simulation Conference 2004 Simulation modeling is a tool of hospital-wide system process change with a focus on improving patient satisfaction through a better clinical process. Some of the improvements, based on existing systems, include decreased delays, better healthcare staff utilization and tailored scheduling. In this part 2 of 2 perioperative case studies (part 1: Ambulatory Surgery Unit), the experiences of three distinct, yet complimentary professions are combined and opitimized: nursing/healthcare planning, architecture, and simulation engineering to create a better way to provide a clinical service in a newly designed healthcare space. ![]() |
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Simulating Six Sigma Improvement Ideas for a Hospital Emergency Department Martin J. Miller and David M. Ferrin, Business Prototyping Inc. and Jill M. Szymanski, Baptist Health South Florida ![]() ![]() |
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A Simulation Model for Emergency Centres Erhan Kozan and Nick Mesken, School of Mathematical Sciences, Queensland University of Technology International Congress on Modelling and Simulation ![]() The ExtendSim model built for this project could be used to: • analyze the effects of incoming calls on a system • optimize personnel resources at call centers • investigate the impact of workload distribution, shift schedule adjustments, and staffing profiles on response times • estimate the impact on the resources required in relation to a reduction or increase in the number of communication centers • improve the efficiency and location of dispatch services • improve the ambulance allocation algorithm ![]() |
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Related Videos
An Overview of MASH-Pandemics
Narrated by Professor Elise Miller-Hooks, George Mason University
Overview of the MASH-Pandemics portal that supports hospitals and regional administrators in responding to the current COVID-19 pandemic and other disease outbreaks. Using mathematical modeling, it provides recommendations to help hospitals adapt and coordinate to meet demand surges.
HealthCare Modeling
Presented by Susan O'Hara, RN, MPH President O'Hara HealthCare Consultants and Robin Clark of the QMT Group
Susan O'Hara of O'Hara HealthCare Consultants and Robin Clark of the QMT Group present a case study of a surgical department demonstrating the importance of making accurate predictions in the healthcare field.
The Use of Discrete-Event Simulation in Healthcare Operations Research
Presented by Eric Goldlust, MD, PhD
This hour-long video is part of a webinar series hosted by Healthcare Systems Modeling & Simulation Affinity Group of Society of Simulation in Healthcare that was streamed live on June 23, 2014. Though it does not specifically discuss ExtendSim use the healthcare field, it is a very useful discussion about the benefits attained through using simulation to help address the complexities and variability in patient flow and clinical practice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oZa950qgoU
The Benefits of Using Modeling and Simulation in Drug Development
Very brief (3 minute) video published July 27, 2014 by Roche pRED Clinical Pharmacology to introduce how they use modeling and simulation to help theire clinical teams define the best design for new studies. The video explains how modeling and simulation is conducted at Roche and is used to take more informative decisions. This video does not talk about ExtendSim, but it's a very useful video.
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