Hospital Emergency

He observed that work was unevenly divided among clerks and that the clerk responsible for checking violations tended to shortcut her task to keep up with the others. Long lines built up during the max-demand periods.

Stephen also found that Step 1 to 4 were handled by general clerks who were each paid $12/hr. Step 5 was performed by a photographer paid $16/hr. (Branch offices were charged $10/hr for each camera to perform photography.) Step 6, issuing temporary licenses, was required by the Department policy to be handled by uniformed motor vehicle officers. Officers were paid $18/hr but could be assigned to any job except photography.

A review of the jobs indicated that Step 1, reviewing applications for correctness, had to be performed before any other step could betemporary licenses, could not be performed until all the other steps were completed.

Stephen was under great pressure to increase productivity and costs, but he was told by the regional director that he must accommodate the demand for renewals.

1.

What is the max no. of applications/hr that can be handled by the present configuration of the process? (2%)

2.

How many applications can be processed/hr if a second clerk is added to check for violations? (2%)

3.

If the second clerk could be added anywhere you choose (and not necessarily to check for violation, as in #2), what is the max no. of applications the process can handle? What is the new configuration? (4%)

4.

How would you suggest modifying the process to accommodate 120 applications/hr? what is the cost per application for this new configuration? (8%)

4.

A hospital emergency room (ER) is currently organized so that all patients register through an initial check-in process. At his or her turn, each patient is seen by a doctor and then exists the process, either with a prescription or with admission to the hospital. Currently, 55 people per hour arrive at the ER, 10% of who are admitted to the hospital. On average, 7 people are waiting to the registered and 34 are registered and waiting to see a doctor. The registration process takes, on average, 2 minutes per patient. Among patients who receive prescriptions, average time spent with a doctor is 5 minutes. Among those admitted to the hospital, average time is 30 minutes. (14%)

1.

On average, how long does a patient spend in the ER?temporary licenses, could not be performed until all the other steps were completed.

Stephen was under great pressure to increase productivity and costs, but he was told by the regional director that he must accommodate the demand for renewals.

1.

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