Evaluating the layout of the emergency department of a public hospital using computer simulation modeling: A case study

Facilities layout represents one of the most significant opportunities for expanding and improving the performance of any system including healthcare. This paper reports on work done to evaluate a revised layout of the emergency department of a public hospital. The objectives of revising the layout were: 1) improving patient satisfaction through minimizing patient waiting time, and 2) expanding the capacity of the department. MedModel was selected as a simulation tool for modeling and simulating both the existing the revised layouts. The results showed that by implementing the revised layout, the average waiting time of a certain category of patients reduced 75% and the capacity of the department increased 10% per month.