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Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model
Includes bibliographical references.
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| Main Author: | |
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Division of Emergency Medicine
2014
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| _version_ | 1867613260896796672 |
|---|---|
| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Stein, Christopher Owen Alexander |
| author2 | Wallis, Lee |
| author_browse | Stein, Christopher Owen Alexander Wallis, Lee |
| author_facet | Wallis, Lee Stein, Christopher Owen Alexander |
| author_sort | Stein, Christopher Owen Alexander |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Includes bibliographical references. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/9523 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:33:19.547Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2014 |
| publishDateRange | 2014 |
| publishDateSort | 2014 |
| publisher | Division of Emergency Medicine |
| publisherStr | Division of Emergency Medicine |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/9523 Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model Stein, Christopher Owen Alexander Wallis, Lee Adetunji, Olufemi Includes bibliographical references. This study investigated the effects of different response strategies, vehicle location strategies and vehicle numbers on response times in a simulated Emergency Medical Services system. The simulation was a computer model using discrete-event simulation and the model was based on Western Cape Emergency Medical Services operations in Cape Town. The study objectives were to (i) create the simulation model, (ii) determine the best-performing combination of explanatory factors and (iii) determine the effect of increasing vehicle numbers on response time performance. The simulation model took into account incident arrival rates, incident and hospital spatial distributions, vehicle numbers and dispatch practices in the modelled system. Verification and validation of the simulation model utilised a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. The validated simulation model was changed in two ways: (i) the response strategy was changed to either single or two-tier (the response model factor) and (ii) the vehicle location strategy was changed to either dynamic or static (the vehicle location factor). This yielded four individual models each representing one combination of these factors. Each simulation model was run for a simulated period of seven days. Output data were analysed using multivariate analysis of variance in order to identify differences in response time between the factor combinations. A single-tier model using dynamic vehicle locations produced the best response performance. This model was run repeatedly, increasing vehicle numbers incrementally with each run to assess the effect of increased vehicle numbers on response time performance. A doubling of vehicle numbers resulted in an 14% increase in the number of responses meeting the national performance target for high acuity incidents, while a seven-fold increase in vehicle numbers increased this to 15%. No further performance increases were seen beyond this with increased vehicle numbers. A 2% performance increase for lower acuity incidents was seen with the same increase in vehicle numbers. In the system modelled, increasing vehicle numbers should not be expected to realise anything more than small improvements in response time performance, at a high operational cost. Fine-grained dynamic deployment of vehicles in anticipation of system demand appears to be a more important determinant of response performance than vehicle numbers alone. 2014-11-11T06:51:55Z 2014-11-11T06:51:55Z 2014 Doctoral Thesis Doctoral PhD http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9523 eng application/pdf Division of Emergency Medicine Faculty of Health Sciences University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | Stein, Christopher Owen Alexander Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model |
| thesis_degree_str | Doctoral |
| title | Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model |
| title_full | Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model |
| title_fullStr | Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model |
| title_full_unstemmed | Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model |
| title_short | Emergency medical service response system performance in an urban South African setting: a computer simulation model |
| title_sort | emergency medical service response system performance in an urban south african setting a computer simulation model |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9523 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT steinchristopherowenalexander emergencymedicalserviceresponsesystemperformanceinanurbansouthafricansettingacomputersimulationmodel |