Effective ambulatory service capacity management.

An effective capacity management program can increase operational productivities while reducing patient congestion. A framework for ambulatory care capacity management is presented that includes both demand-smoothing and supply-matching strategies. A case study focuses on analyzing congestion in the patient care delivery process at a medical oncology outpatient clinic. Through the use of a balanced and coordinated set of capacity management strategies, a low-cost approach to improved performance may be designed.