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Leah R avatar image
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Leah R asked Joerg Vogel commented

Building process flow based on database

Hello !

I was wondering if it was possible to automatically build a process flow based on a database using flexsim healthcare.

Let's assume my database looks like this :

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Table #1 describes the pathway timestamps. It has 3 columns : patient ID, timestamp type (example : TA = patient enters the service), and time.

Table #2 describes the pathway activities. It has 4 columns : patient ID, activity type (example : AB = prepare patient for surgery), duration, resource (example : HR_AB = OR nurse).

Can I create a patient process in flexsim that allows me to simulate what is described in this table ? This would allow me to have great flexibility in my model as patient process can evolve over time.

This is kind of similar to process mining which allows you to automatically draw processes based on a timestamp database.

Thanks in advance,

Leah

FlexSim 23.2.1
patient flow
1719584007778.png (27.1 KiB)
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Jeanette F avatar image Jeanette F ♦♦ commented ·

Hi @Leah R,

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Clair A avatar image Clair A Jeanette F ♦♦ commented ·
Hi @Jeanette F , Leah is using a maintained license from IMT Mines Albi.
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Jeanette F avatar image Jeanette F ♦♦ commented ·

Hi @Leah R, was Allister Wilson's answer helpful? If so, please click the "Accept" button at the bottom of their answer. Or if you still have questions, add a comment and we'll continue the conversation.

If we haven't heard back from you within 3 business days we'll auto-accept an answer, but you can always comment back to reopen your question.

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Joerg Vogel avatar image Joerg Vogel commented ·
@Leah R, so far as I know, there aren’t any ways to add dynamically activities into a process flow. Your logic must be setup to achieve what you want from model start on. But you can dynamically change evaluated data while a model runs, as long as any change is reasonable and events happens in the future of model runtime.
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1 Answer

Allister Wilson avatar image
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Allister Wilson answered

Hello Leah,

If you can precisely define what a "process step" implies, then you could build a patient flow which :

  • iterates over the first table, one step at a time
  • waits until the correct time
  • reads the second table to determine what must be done
  • acquires any necessary resources for the step, then releases any resources still held from the previous step if needed
  • performs the process

I suggest you take a look at the Table class (user manual) if you're unsure how to read information from a table inside a process flow.

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