New classification of medical staff clinical services for optimal reconstruction of job workflow in a surgical ward: Application of spectrum analysis and sequence relational analysis

Abstract

In order to optimize the job workflow of medical staff, clinical job workflow was investigated from the viewpoint of its periodicity and the strength of causal association among jobs. Time-motion study for the staff at a surgical ward was carried out. To detect the periodicity of the occurrence of each job element, its frequency histogram was determined, and the discrete Fourier transformation was applied. For the analysis on the strength of the relationship among the job-sequence, the sequence relational analysis was developed, which was the expansion of the relation analysis to the sequence process. The job elements were classified into five incident patterns based on the periodicity of each element and into three patterns based on the association with other job elements. Based on time-motion study data, job workflow patterns of medical staff’ were clarified based on the incident pattern of the job elements and the association with other job elements.