From behavioural simulation to computer models: how simulation can be used to improve healthcare management and policy

Abstract

Simulation is a technique that evokes or replicates substantial aspects of the real world, in order to experiment with a simplified imitation of an operations system, for the purpose of better understanding and/or improving that system. Simulation provides a safe environment for investigating individual and organisational behaviour and a risk-free testbed for new policies and procedures. Therefore, it can complement or replace direct field observations and trial-and-error approaches, which can be time consuming, costly and difficult to carry out. However, simulation has low adoption as a research and improvement tool in healthcare management and policy-making. The literature on simulation in these fields is dispersed across different disciplinary traditions and typically focuses on a single simulation method. In this article, we examine how simulation can be used to investigate, understand and improve management and policy-making in healthcare organisations. We develop the rationale for using simulation and provide an integrative overview of existing approaches, using examples of in vivo behavioural simulations involving live participants, pure in silico computer simulations and intermediate approaches (virtual simulation) where human participants interact with computer simulations of health organisations. We also discuss the combination of these approaches to organisational simulation and the evaluation of simulation-based interventions.

‘Serious Games’ for unboxing Global Digital Health policymaking

“…Several recent articles in BMJ Simulation & Technology Enhanced Learning describe the utility of simulations for developing policy. 3 4 However, the participatory policymaking process itself, described as a set of discrete, goal-directed actions within a bounded environment, conforms well to the metaphor of the game. In fact, game theory has been shown to offer several useful insights for understanding and evaluating the legislative policymaking process itself.…”

Designing optimal COVID-19 testing stations locally: A discrete event simulation model applied on a university campus

“…In this line, the following paragraphs focus on the applications of computer simulation to improve the performance of health services during the COVID-19 crisis. Lamé and Simmons (2020) discussed how simulation could be used in research works aiming at improving the quality, safety, and efficiency of healthcare systems [18]. In this line, Lamé and Dixon-Woods (2020) emphasized the substantial potential of simulation in healthcare systems, stating that "simulation can offer researchers access to events that can otherwise not be directly observed, and in a safe and controlled environment" and that "it is a flexible and pluripotent technique that can be used in multiple study designs in healthcare improvement research" [19].…”

“…In fact, DES is a method for simulating the behavior and performance of a real-life process, facility, or system [18]. In comparison with the principal features of SD and ABS models [24], DES models focus on processes that involve the use of a queue.…”

The Benefits of a Hybrid Simulation Hub to Deal with Pandemics

“…Despite the potential benefits of HS and the growing interests several challenges are reported to be addressed beforehand (Eldabi et al 2018). For example, most of the current attempts are ad hoc and based on academic curiosity (Lamé and Simmons 2018); lack of platforms to link models (Brailsford et al 2019); no clear methodological approach to develop HS conceptual models (Eldabi et al 2016); and the rising cost of using more than one package (Brailsford et al 2019). Currie et al (2020) is the first comprehensive article to highlight the role of modeling and simulation for the fight against COVID-19 from a purely modeling perspective.…”