A Scheduling Optimization Approach to Reduce Outpatient Waiting Times for Specialists

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Operations Research
• Public Health Policy

Background:

• Long waiting times for outpatient care present a significant global public health challenge.
• Portugal's National Health Service (NHS) aims for equitable healthcare access, but appointment delays impede this goal.
• Inefficiencies in scheduling and resource allocation contribute to extended patient wait times.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a novel prioritization-scheduling approach for outpatient appointments within the NHS.
• To enhance healthcare accessibility and reduce waiting times by optimizing hospital capacity and appointment sequencing.
• To provide a data-driven tool for improving healthcare management and patient flow.

Main Methods:

• A mathematical model integrated with a heuristic method was employed for prioritization and scheduling.
• The approach optimized hospital capacity within defined geographic areas.
• Simulated instances based on real NHS hospital data were used for testing and validation.

Main Results:

• The model effectively integrated regional hospital resources for efficient specialist appointment allocation.
• Significant reductions in patient waiting times were observed through optimized scheduling.
• The approach demonstrated improved accessibility to specialized outpatient care.

Conclusions:

• The proposed prioritization-scheduling strategy offers a promising solution for managing outpatient appointment systems.
• Integration into a decision support system can provide valuable tools for healthcare management.
• This research contributes to improving the efficiency and equity of public healthcare delivery.