The DGHPSim Waiting List Model

Unlike the other 3 models in the DGHPSim suite, the Waiting List Model cannot be run alone, but is the glue that links the Outpatient and Inpatient Models. It simulates the addition of patients to a waiting list for elective care and their subsequent admission.



Managing Waiting Lists
It is well-known that waiting lists are rarely, if ever, run as First-In-First-Out (FIFO) queues. Instead, it seems that most specialists admit patients on the basis of how long they have been waiting and some priority system. This is simulated in the waiting list model in which patients are classified as 'urgent' or 'routine'. The model uses a waiting list for each (user-defined) specialty.

The Waiting List Model in DGHPSim
A full DGHPSim simulation runs in continuous time - that is, it emulates the progress of real-time, but much faster. Hence, simulated patients are arriving, leaving and changing state throughout the simulation. Thus patients are added to the lists as they are seen in the simulated outpatient clinics.

Each simulated week, the model allocates admission slots, based on the number of patients that could be admitted for elective care based on normal processing rates. Patients are allocated to slots based on their priority, which increases if they have waited longer than a defined time. Not all of the patients in a slot may actually be admitted, however, as the required bed may not be available due to other factors such as emergency patients or longer than expected lengths of stay. Hence actual admission rates vary, as in real life.