Trends and Research in the Decision Sciences: Best Papers from the 2014 Annual Conference

9. Improving Timely Administration of Inhaled Medications in Hospitals

—Fred F. Easton, Whitman School of Management

—Gary E. LaPoint, Syracuse University

—Russell A. Acevedo, MD Crouse Hospital

Abstract

Under common medication schedules, all hospital inpatients receive their scheduled medications at the same time. However, nearly 20 percent of all inpatients over age 40 have COPD and require inhaled medications that take ~20 minutes to administer. As a result, inhaled medications are often administered late. To level clinician workload and reduce tardiness, we use a two-stage stochastic program to select staggered administration schedules for inhaled drugs. Guided by due date priorities, a team of clinicians travels from care unit to care unit ...