Operations analysis and appointment scheduling for an outpatient chemotherapy department

With current increasing demands for outpatient medical services, healthcare providers have had to analyze methods for providing safety and quality care services under constrained resources. A long waiting-time has a severe impact not only on the patients' satisfaction but also on the physical conditions of the patients, who receive invasive treatment in ambulatory care facilities. Patients treated with outpatient chemotherapy have been rapidly increasing over the last decade in Japan. In this context, a discrete event simulation model for exploring appointment scheduling in an outpatient chemotherapy department of a general hospital was developed. An efficient schedule was identified that held bed utilization to a tolerance level by restraining the excess waiting-time in a clinical setting. It is suggested that a scheduling method based on the infusion time be available for the outpatient chemotherapy department.