Outline

The following screen-shot illustrates the Percept Simulation Model developed for Basingstoke DGH. This model is able to simulate the many potential PatientFlows that a patient might experience and the staff and other resources required by them.

The Percept model simulates the PatientFlows documented by the Trust using our PatientFlow Planning software for 2 sources of Patient (self-referral and Ambulance arrivals) and each of their 3 main categories: 1. Walk-in, 2.Trolley, 3. Resuscitation.

Plus it looks at those patients who are admitted to the Medical Assessment Unit/AAA including those patients admitted via A&E and those patients admitted directly by, for example, their GP.

Evaluation

FEEDBACK SUPPLIED BY NORTH HAMPSHIRE NHS TRUST

If your organisation is serious about simulation as a planning tool I would offer the following as some learning points and I know some of these seem obvious but I think they are worth re-iterating:-

• Ensure your organisation understands the basic principles of simulation and how is it going to help with your planning
• Make sure you understand your own data and can be sure of its quality
• Allow more time than you think for process mapping – Nurses, Consultants, and Managers believe it is time very well spent.
• Make sure you get clinical input from day one, especially with the process mapping

Get more than one opinion, particularly with regard to the triangulation, consultants and nurses have a different perspective of what happens within the ED on a daily basis and how long it takes .

• Listen to any advice given by Focused_On Health
• Don’t lose sight of your overall objectives
• Avoid getting caught up in detail and mapping or simulating every eventuality
• Do not treat simulation as a data analysis exercise

An example question might be “What is the impact on equipment and staff utilisation (hence waits) if demand in the ED goes up 10%?” If you can answer this question with such a simple table covering both utilisation and waiting time impact, you may not need simulation, if you can’t , then simulation can help you.

So where are we now?

Our new Emergency Assessment Centre is still it the feasibility stage, we have now engaged the architects who are working with the quantity surveyor and engineers to tell us what is possible.

We have not made our final recommendation to the Board, but when we do I will be confident that not only will it be deliverable from both an architectural/design perspective but also from an operational/patient perspective. It will be a truly fit for purpose recommendation.

Further Information

More information can be obtained from Focused-on: www.focused-on.com or contact Steve Burnell.