The index is formulated based on five key performance indicators and was tested as a Healthcare Quality Index (HQI) based on three key quality indicators of dignity, confidence and communication in an Accident and Emergency department. This research identifies the key elements that are necessary for developing a real-time quality monitoring system for the healthcare environment.Secondly, a unique index is proposed for the monitoring and improvement of healthcare performance using information-theoretic entropy formalism. The contributions of this research are fourfold: Firstly, it argues that from the technological point of view the research to date into quality of service in healthcare has not considered methods of real-time measurement and monitoring. This research focuses on the problem of quality measurement in the healthcare sector. At the philosophical level, the true nature of quality is still debated at the psychological level, an accurate conceptual representation is problematic whilst at the physical level, an accurate measurement of the concept still remains elusive to practitioners and academics. The challenge of measuring the quality of service in healthcare requires us to view the problem from multiple perspectives. This research investigates and develops a new approach to the management of service quality with the emphasis on patient and staff satisfaction in the healthcare sector. Random forests were implemented for creating higher accuracy predictions and they produced a mean square error of ~0.066 on the training data and ~0.081 on test data. The generated regression tree expressed a general trend by demonstrating relationships between input variables and two conflicting objectives. A real-life test case involving a turbine assembly process is presented to illustrate the use and validity of the framework. The framework uses regression and classification trees with overlaid values for multiple objectives and random forests to improve prediction accuracy for new points. Regression trees have been proposed to assist stakeholders with understanding the relationships between input and output variables. The results show the resource allocation meta-model provides acceptable prediction accuracy whilst the lead time meta-model was not able to provide accurate prediction.
A framework is presented to enable the optimisation DES simulation models and optimise multiple objectives simultaneously using design of experiments and meta-models to create a Pareto front of solutions. The literature review has identified key research gaps as: The lack of example cases where multi-objective optimisation methods have been applied to simulation models The need for a framework to visualise the relationship between inputs and outputs of simulation models. Scenario analysis and optimisation methods are often applied to these simulation models to improve objectives such as cost, profit and throughput. Technological innovations for data collection and an increasingly competitive global market have led to an increase in the application of Discrete Event Simulation by manufacturing companies in recent years. This paper explores the use of Discrete Event Simulation (DES) for decision making in real time based on the potential for data streamed from production line sensors. Utilizations of different assembly positions were yielded as the result of discrete simulation modeling of many bundled jobs and stands of the 747 final assembly operation. This work outlined some of the moving line concepts, modeling objectives, and simulation analysis. The results presented highly optimized production flows and processes, reducing cost and flow time from the traditionally 24 days to the targeted possible 18 days. These models not only presented a visual understanding of different concepts, but also provided quantitative analysis of suggested scenarios to the moving line team.
Discrete event simulation models were constructed to analyze numerous 747 final assembly moving line scenarios throughout several phases.
When the decision was made to implement a moving line for the final assembly of the 747 it was absolutely necessary to evaluate many aspects of these jobs. There are thousands of jobs performed on the Queen of the Sky, the Boeing 747, final assembly line for each airplane.