Healthcare Facility Planning Simulator with Dynamic Map Visualization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current healthcare systems lack integrated tools for efficiently assembling, manipulating, and visualizing large amounts of data during facilities planning, leading to burdensome and error-prone decision-making processes in expanding or redeploying resources.
Innovation Solution
A digital healthcare facility planning system that includes a database for storing demographic data and a simulator applying modeling tools such as protocols of care, service configuration, financial analysis, and facility modeling, which generates output data and displays it visually on a map, allowing users to input changes and see their impacts dynamically.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If spreadsheets are used to assemble and manipulate data for healthcare facility planning, then data can be compiled and scenarios can be examined, but the process becomes burdensome and error-prone with limited visual analysis capability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual spreadsheet manipulation with an automated simulation system that uses computational models to calculate facility planning scenarios. The system automatically processes demographic data, predicts patient volumes, and generates financial projections without requiring manual formula entry or recalculation, thereby reducing time and error while maintaining analytical capability
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables dynamic parameter changes by allowing users to modify input variables such as population growth rates, service demand elasticities, and capital investment levels. The simulation model then automatically recalculates all dependent parameters including patient volumes, revenue projections, and break-even points, providing immediate feedback on scenario outcomes without manual intervention
2Loss of information
If spreadsheets are used for healthcare facility planning, then data can be assembled, but visual representation and intuitive analysis are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms two-dimensional spreadsheet data into three-dimensional visual representations including geographic maps showing facility locations, bar charts displaying service demand projections, and pie charts illustrating market share distributions. This dimensional transformation makes complex data relationships immediately visible and intuitive for decision-making
3Measurement precision
If comprehensive data is collected for healthcare facility planning, then more accurate predictions can be made, but the complexity of the planning tool increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments comprehensive planning data into distinct modules including demographic data, economic data, service demand data, and facility capacity data. Each module is processed by specialized simulation models that independently analyze specific aspects of facility planning, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining comprehensive analytical capability through modular architecture
Data Source
AI summary
A system for planning at a healthcare facility employs a database that stores health care facility impacting data including demographic data describing a preselected set of aspects of a population residing within a defined geographic area. A simulator applies modeling tools to the health care facility impacting data and generates output data corresponding to selected data in the health care facility impacting data. The modeling tools include a protocols of care tool; a service configuration modeling tool; a financial analysis tool; and a facility modeling tool. A video monitor displays an image of a map with a visual representation of the geographic area and a plurality of dynamically configurable data display objects that are superimposed on the map. Each data display object is disposed adjacent to a location of a different healthcare facility and each displays output data generated by the simulator.