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Why ProModel Healthcare Simulation Solutions?

ProModel is dedicated to helping our customers and consulting partners make better health care decisions through the effective application of simulation solutions. We provide “predictive analytical technologies” to aid in solving the most complex problems in health care management. Our unique technologies and experience allow clients to increase patient throughput and capacity, optimize operations and patient flow, increase patient revenues, and decrease facility, equipment, and labor costs.

ProModel’s Process Simulation toolsets allow the objective and accurate testing of multiple, complex, and dynmanic solutions in a risk-free environment to better understand the impact of change, BEFORE capital and resources are expended.

Benefits of Simulation Technology over traditional Consulting

ProModel Healthcare Simulation Solutions are dynamic analytical tools that enable users to conduct accurate, objective predictive analyses on process and facility changes and designs. The technology allows a customer to “tear the roof off the building”, look down and “turn the dials” on the processes to fully understand the impacts of changes before strategic decisions are made. The benefits of using process simulation as a predictive analysis tool in health care are related to its ability to deal with four key issues:

1) Variability in and between processes. All human activity is variable. That is, no two iterations of a process performed by humans are exactly the same…there is always some degree of variability in process time. Variability within a series of processes has the effect of compounding. That is, the variability of one process directly affects the next process, and the next, and the next. This variability can severely alter total system process times and flow. (For instance, there is no single LOS for patients in an ED…all LOS’s are different). Thus, it is necessary to account for this variability in order to accurately examine process parameters such as patient flow, throughput, process times, wait times, staffing requirements, etc. Average numbers commonly used in process analysis fail to account for process variability, resulting in what is called the “error of averages”, which can lead to misleading results, bad decisions, poor financial performance, and poor patient experiences. Because spreadsheets and flowcharts that utilize averages do not account for this important variability, they can yield misleading conclusions.

ProModel Healthcare Simulation tools take variability into account, thus allowing a much more realistic depiction of real-life processes, and more accurate predictions of throughput, process times, and other key factors. ProModel’s health care-specific softwares, such as MedModel®, ED Simulator™, and Process Simulator™, use distributions (or data curves) that accurately represent the processes and its inherent variability to derive their results, thus modeling reality. Because simulations account for this variability, they are inherently more accurate that static analysis tools such as spreadsheets and flowcharts.

2) Interdependencies. Because hospital processes are interrelated, changing one affects the others in the system. Coupled with the inherent and often drastic variability within processes, these interdependencies make process analysis particularly complex. ProModel simulations take the interdependencies of processes into account, thus allowing the user to see how changes to one process can affect others both upstream and downstream. Without this capability, examination of system-wide processes and changes becomes extremely difficult, particularly in cases of complex systems such as Emergency Departments.

3) Time. Processes take place over time. Futhermore, everything from patient acutities to volumes to technologies can impact processes over a day, week, or year. Thus, in order to properly account for the effects of change to processes, particularly subtle change, one must be able to evaluate changes over a span of time. ProModel simulations can run for days, weeks, months, even years, in order to determine the true long term effects of changes to a system. This allows the user to see how changes, combinations of changes, and even subtle changes, will affect the overall system over the course of extended time periods.

4) What-If’s. Because ProModel Healthcare Solutions account for variability, the interdependencies within a system, and the effects of time, they are accurate representations of even the most complex real-life systems. Because of this inherent accuracy and the structure of a model, it allows the user to test the effects of proposed changes on the system. By testing possible solutions to problems, the model becomes a risk-free environment for the evaluation of ideas and potential solutions. Combinations of complex solutions can be tried in minutes using a model that might take months to implement and analyze of the hospital floor. Thus, ProModel Healthcare Solutions serve as an easier, more effective predictive analysis tool for decision-making.

Accuracy

By taking into account variability and interdependencies of processes, the complexity of multiple inter-related processes, and the effects of change over time, ProModel Healthcare simulation are very accurate and objective. They are so accurate (documented accuracy versus real-life as high as 99%) that they become highly functional and reliable predictive analysis and ongoing CPI (continuous process improvement) tools.

Complexity

Because of the robustness of the technology, simulations can account for many variables and processes simultaneously, enabling a customer to build the complexity of their scenario(s) into a useable format for decision-making. ProModel simulations have replicated processes involving tens of thousands of concurrent variables. Thus the technology allows the user to 1) simplify even the most complex problems, 2) see key issues and results of change more clearly, and 3) make better and more objective decisions.

Value

ProModel Healthcare Simulation Solutions quickly create value and ROI by providing a means by which clients can effectively and rapidly determine complex courses of action for process improvements without the risk and cost of best guesses and live experimentation. By using an accurate, dynamic representation of the facility, ProModel simulations offer clients a close and precise look at processes at a level not seen before, thus offering solutions heretofore difficult or impossible to attain. Solutions provided are often combinations of recommendations that might otherwise have been impossible to determine. This enables complex solutions to be implemented with benchmarks for performance and assurance of success. Thus, ProModel is able to deliver a better, more complete solution in less time with a degree of certainty impossible to attain with other analytical tools.

Project value is greatly enhanced when the ProModel solution is used beyond the initial project by the hospital staff to evaluate scenarios and make continuous process improvement. Local understanding and involvement greatly facilitates change management and the probability that project recommendations will be successfully implemented and real value obtained.

Using simulation, clients frequently uncover the following:

• Hidden process issues and problems
• Staffing inefficiencies
• Non-value-added and redundant processes
• Room and resource allocation problems
• Bottlenecks and capacity constraints
• Under- and over-utilized resources, rooms, and staff
• Ancillary issues such as issues with radiology, lab or transfers

The value created with a ProModel Healthcare Simulation is typically in the millions of dollars and the benefits have included:

• Decreased LOS and wait times by as much as 40%, from as little as 20 minutes up to hours savings
• Decreased LWOT’s by 5% to 30%
• Increased throughput capacity of existing facility by over 15,000 patient annually while maintaining existing staff levels and LOS
• Decreased Radiology turn-around time by nearly 40%
• Decreased lab turn-around time
• Improved design and process flow before plans were finalized