A Petri net based model of patient-flows in a progressive patient-care system

Modeling patient flows is an important modeling issue, providing healthcare managers with information regarding the resourcing requirements during the planning phase of new healthcare facilities, as well as the performance evaluation of existing facilities. This paper develops a generic model of patient flows in a progressive patient-care system based on colored Petri nets. The model is developed at two different levels of detail. At the higher-level is the flow of patients between different units. At the lower-level is the functioning of the individual units which gives rise to the higher-level behavior. Each individual unit comprising the system is represented as having a generic structure with patient length of stay and admission rates modeled as random variables for different types of patient. The model proposed here improves on previous models of patient flow in terms of flexibility, extensibility, and the range of performance parameters it is able to generate