Process flow analysis
A health clinic in Columbia, MD, is staffed by two receptionists, three nurses, and three physicians. While actual patient experience may vary, suppose the following depicts a typical process that most patients go through during a visit to the clinic:
Upon arrival at the clinic one of the receptionists welcomes the patient, verifies insurance information, and collects required payment which takes about five minutes. The patient is then asked to take a seat in the waiting room, and after about 6 minutes waiting time, one of the nurses leads the patient to an examination room, verifies and updates patient information, and takes temperature and blood pressure. The nurse spends about 10 minutes on average with each patient. After waiting for about 5 minutes, the physician comes in and spends an average of about 12 minutes examining the patient. The patient is then directed to the receptionist to make follow-up appointment which takes about 3 minutes.
What is the bottleneck activity and what is the capacity of the process?
What is the throughput time of a typical patient visit?
If an average of 12 patients arrive at the clinic per hour, how many patietns will be in the clinic?
Suppose each receptionist is paid $15/hour, the nurses are paid $25/hour each, and physicians are paid $85/hour each. In addition, assume fringe benefits cost 25% of the direct labor cost. What is the average cost of labor and fringe benefits per patient visit for the clinic if 12 patients are served per hour?
What will be the average hourly cost of labor and fringe benefits when the clinic operates at full capacity?