Modelling emergency department patient flow under normal operating conditions and in a pandemic

Grant ID: EMLE-151R33-2020-BURKE

Project Summary

Patient flow in emergency departments (ED) is impeded when the number of patients exceed physical and/or staffing capacity. This is often referred to as crowding, and is common problem for EDs across the country, adversely impacting patients, staff and the healthcare system.

While many strategies have been reported and trialled to mitigate the consequences of crowding and address its causes, there is no one solution that fits all EDs.

Researchers propose to develop and test a computer model to mimic the ED, simulating patient flow to provide forecasts that can inform policy makers. This is especially important in periods of anticipated high demand for emergency services such as in the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Emergency doctors will team-up with academic researchers to model patient flow in the emergency department to consider operational changes and provide knowledge to guide decision-making for improvement strategies that will lead to faster, more effective patient care, better outcomes and more effective, economical choices.

This innovative collaboration between doctors and university researchers aims to solve real-life system-level problems affecting patient care. The research will generate practical outcomes that improve clinical practice at a system level so that we can better care for our patients.

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