A simulation approach: Improving patient waiting time for multiphase patient flow of Obstetrics and Gynecology Department (O&G Department) in local specialist centre

An outpatient clinic is a very complex department to manage. The management of the outpatient department should given greater emphasis on its medical facilities in order to ensure the services provided are in high quality, which conforms to customer or patient satisfaction. Long waiting time for treatment at the department is always the main problem faced by the management, and even worst the consultation time is tremendously shorter than the waiting time. This situation has been a common complaint by the patients and remains to occur even though an appointment system is implemented. The implementation of inefficient appointment and inconsistent service time contributes to the dissatisfaction among patients as well as giving a huge impact to the healthcare's overall operations. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to analyze the multiphase patient flow system in Obstetrics and Gynecology Department (O&G Department) of a specialist centre by developing a simulation model that illustrates the actual patient flow in the department. The Arena 7.0 software package is used to develop the simulation model in order to examine the patient flow, especially the waiting time involved. In addition, 120 questionnaires were distributed to patients to gather direct responds and opinions towards the services provided. The information gathered was used to aid the model improvement process. The result obtained from the simulation model shows that a long waiting time does exist in the system. Based on the developed simulation model, two proposed experimentation are being done to find the right solutions to reduce the patients' waiting time and at the same time enhanced the quality of services of the O&G Department. The proposed experimentation model can be effective to the system and is possible to be implemented in the department.