Generic Policy Evaluation Model In a Multi-Facility Diagnostic Imaging Setting

When evaluating regional health performance in a multi-facility setting, patient behaviour must be accounted for with services where facility choice is available. This paper describes the development of an agent-based simulation model designed to evaluate policy scenarios which incorporates facility choice, patient behaviour and operational constraints in the diagnostic imaging setting, specifically in MRI. The model is validated by retrospectively simulating the performance of the region for a year and comparing the results with actual performance. Using the model, theoretical results are confirmed where additional facility choice leads to more equitable but higher waiting times. We demonstrate how the model can be used by policy makers to evaluate various planning scenarios by expanding capacity at selected sites and show that the benefits of additional capacity is not limited to the expanding sites.%%%%M.A.S.