MAT/543 MAT543 MAT 543 WEEK 6 Homework

MAT 543 WEEK 6 Homework

Week 6 Homework

Homework

• Chapter 8: Exercises 8-1 through 8-5 (page 155 of the text)
• Chapter 9: Exercises 9-1 and 9-2 (page 174 of the text)

REAL WORLD SCENARIO

An occupational health clinic does two general types of visits, each involving the direct actions of a receptionist/billing clerk, a registered nurse who is also able to take simple x-rays, and a physician. No emergency care is provided. Visits include injuries paid for by workers compensation and employer paid physicals. The clinic has been asked to respond to a request for proposal (RFP) for 200 physicals per month. It has two questions. First, can the clinic, as currently staffed, do 200 more physicals per month, and if not, should it hire an additional nurse or physician to take on this added workload? Second, if the contribution margin on each of these new physicals was $100, what financial impact will this new contract have on the clinic?

LEARNING OBJECTIVE 1: TO DESCRIBE THE CAPACITY OF A SYSTEM

System capacity is finite and is created by the resources available to a system. Capacity analysis provides a quantitative methodology for establishing the production constraints of a given service system or function. Doing so, in conjunction with associated costs and revenues, allows the manager to determine the most efficient mix of resources to accomplish the service at peak operational capacity as well as ways in which the available resources can be manipulated to accomplish changes in desired output.

Capacity analysis is concerned with the efficiency of systems and subsystems. Efficiency is the ratio measure of output and input. Efficiency can be enhanced if output can be increased for the same level of inputs. It can also be increased if the level of output is held constant and input levels are reduced. Examples of inputs include worker hours, supplies, equipment, and facilities. Examples of outputs are measures used to describe specific systems, such as patient days, ambulatory care visits, meals served, and number of surgeries.

Determining the maximum capacity of a system or subsystem and the resources needed to establish a particular level of capacity are the central components of capacity analysis. Health services managers need to monitor systems to ensure that system capacity is close to the actual or forecasted demand for service. If capacity is significantly above actual or forecasted demand, then some resources may need to be subtracted to increase the efficiency of the system. If capacity is below the actual or forecasted demand, then resources may need to be added to ensure that an adequate capacity exists to provide an effective as well as efficient service. In either case, to achieve reasonable levels of efficiency, the manager needs to know when, where, and how to act and what resources need to be added or subtracted.

Health administrators manage service-oriented systems in healthcare organizations. These systems have specific properties that influence how they can be analyzed and the options available to a manager for resource allocation. Service systems used to provide medical care are usually very complex. They are multistep processes, with each step governed by procedures and protocols, and involve many service stations or servers. Even expressed in its simplest form, a typical stay at a hospital requires the coordinated interplay of multistep processes, as shown in Figure 8-1.