Computer simulation in allocation design of a health-care delivery system

With the introduction of the concept of progressive patient care in the health-care delivery system, most hospitals now encounter a heterogeneous flow of patients through the various service units. This complicates the problem of allocation of beds and other facilities and equipment. In this paper, a simulation model has been developed by considering the flow of patients in a hospital as a multi-population immigration-birth-death process. Based upon this model, an algorithm has been developed for allocation of beds to various service units using a search process combined with total systems simulation.