Application of queuing theory to optimize waiting-time in hospital operations

Abstract

Waiting time is inherent to the healthcare service sector in India and a major challenge faced by almost every big hospital is queuing. Long waiting time can be a reflection of inefficiency in hospital operations. The out-patient department (OPD) has the biggest queue as compared to other departments in hospital operations. This study comprises of in-depth analysis of OPD from different dimensions. Like in many big hospitals across India, the OPD of Fortis Escorts Hospital in Jaipur, India is managed using experience and rule of thumb rather than strategic research-based techniques such as queuing theory. The Fortis Escorts Hospital in Jaipur receives a large number of patients each day which results in longer waiting time for patients due to long queues. To address this challenge, a SWOT analysis was conducted for the OPD of Fortis Escorts Hospital Jaipur (FEHJ) which resulted into dissecting the queuing problem and coming out with solutions knowing where the hospital operations can excel and where there is a scope of improvement to make the working and processes better. Additionally, after examining the problem analytically and applying queuing theory, measures were suggested to improve the delay points and make the OPD more efficient in order to gain a high patient satisfaction rating.