Fuzzy modelling and simulation of an emergency department for improvement of nursing schedules with noisy and uncertain inputs

This study presents an integrated fuzzy simulation for improvement of quality of care in the emergency department of a large general hospital. The simulation model is developed to cover the complete flow of patients in the emergency department. Moreover, fuzzy simulation is applied to find the best nursing schedule based on the minimum patients’ queue time. The data for this research was collected from an actual emergency department in a major hospital. A-cut method shows the patient’s waiting time in a queue in the emergency department is shortened, thereby raising the quality of patient-care and patient-satisfaction. The fuzzy simulation approach of this study is ideal for all emergency departments because of extensive uncertainties they face in dealing with patients’ care and treatments. This is the first study that integrates fuzzy logic with simulation for improvement of patient flow in emergency departments with uncertainty and ambiguity.