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Determining an indicator list for benchmarking delivery logistics in proton therapy treatment And a systematic review of operations research application in particle therapy logistics

Schwarte, T. (2016) Determining an indicator list for benchmarking delivery logistics in proton therapy treatment And a systematic review of operations research application in particle therapy logistics.

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Abstract:Introduction: The application of particle therapy (PT) for treatment of cancer patients is increasing worldwide. PT centres can easily cost in excess of €100M to build and operate and should therefore be operated as efficiently as possible. Operations research (OR) is a field of mathematics that is applied to optimise processes. Benchmarking is a method used to compare processes and identify areas of improvement for benchmarking partners. The goal of the paper is to create a list of viable data indicators for a benchmark study and supply an overview of current OR methods used in PT to guide future improvement. Methods: A benchmarking system for specialty hospitals was applied to PT centres. Stakeholder and PT process analysis were used to construct a list of indicators to be assessed by PT centres for data availability, definition clarity, and discriminative value. The results of the assessment were used to determine viable indicators. Additionally, PubMed and Scopus were searched for papers on OR application in PT treatment logistics. Databases were searched from 2000 to February 2016. Inclusion criteria were presence of OR methods and application of these methods in the treatment phase of PT. Results: From the original list of 28 proposed indicators, eight were approved, six were conditionally approved, two were merged, three were modified, and nine were discarded. From the literature review, another two indicators were added. Nine studies were included in the literature review: The literature search returned 42 results from which five papers were included in the study. Four additional papers were included from references. Conclusion: PT centres gather enough data for a viable comparison in a benchmark but extraction of large amounts of data can be troublesome . Users of the indicator list should take care to correct for differences in data entry points. Literature review shows that simulation and linear programming are the most applied OR methods in PT. Radiation delivery processes are well modelled but staff utilisation is not.
Item Type:Essay (Master)
Faculty:TNW: Science and Technology
Subject:44 medicine
Programme:Health Sciences MSc (66851)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/70601
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