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Measuring the Subjective Value of Risky and Ambiguous Options using Experimental Economics and Functional MRI Methods
Published on: September 19, 2012
Ambulance economics
A J Fischer1, P O'Halloran, P Littlejohns
1Public Health Sciences Department, St George's Hospital Medical School, London. afischer@sghms.ac.uk
An economic framework helps ambulance services optimize resource allocation. This study shows how to meet response time targets and improve efficiency through strategic ambulance deployment and innovation.
Area of Science:
- Operations Research
- Health Services Management
- Health Economics
Background:
- Ambulance services generate vast data crucial for strategic planning.
- An economic framework is proposed to analyze resource allocation for emergency medical services.
- Key questions address ambulance numbers, rostering, innovation, and demand impact on response times.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an economic model for ambulance service resource allocation.
- To determine the optimal number of ambulances needed to meet response time targets.
- To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of innovations and temporal rostering strategies.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing the 'Ambulance Response Curve' to quantify the impact of additional ambulances on response times.
- Estimating the marginal cost of ambulances to calculate the opportunity cost of response time.
- Analyzing time savings from temporal ambulance deployment and operational innovations.
Main Results:
- Average response time (r*) was 8 min 52 s; each additional ambulance reduced r* by 8.9 s.
- Meeting response time targets requires 14 additional ambulances.
- Shifting ambulances to peak demand periods and crew readiness significantly reduces response times.
Conclusions:
- Ambulance services can better evaluate the cost-effectiveness of innovations.
- Policymakers gain insights for funding decisions to achieve response time goals.
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