Number of coil changes for each MRI scanner.

The wait times for patients from their appointments to receiving magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are usually long. To reduce this wait time, the present study proposed that service time wastage could be reduced by adjusting MRI examination scheduling by prioritizing patients who require examinations involving the same type of coil. This approach can reduce patient wait times and thereby maximize MRI departments’ service times. To simulate an MRI department’s action workflow, 2,447 MRI examination logs containing the deidentified information of patients and radiation technologists from the MRI department of a medical center were used, and a hybrid simulation model that combined discrete-event and agent-based simulations was developed. The experiment was conducted in two stages. In the first stage, the service time was increased by adjusting the examination schedule and thereby reducing the number of coil changes. In the second stage, the maximum number of additional patients that could be examined daily was determined. The average number of coil changes per day for the four MRI scanners of the aforementioned medical center was reduced by approximately 27. Thus, the MRI department gained 97.17 min/d, which enabled them to examine three additional patients per month. Consequently, the net monthly income of the hospital increased from US$17,067 to US$30,196, and the patient wait times for MRI examinations requiring the use of flexible torso and head, shoulder, 8-inch head, and torso MRI coils were shortened by 6 d and 23 h, 2 d and 15 h, 2 d and 9 h, and 16 h, respectively. Adjusting MRI examination scheduling by prioritizing patients that require the use of the same coil could reduce the coil-setting time, increase the daily number of patients who are examined, increase the net income of the MRI department, and shorten patient wait times for MRI examinations. Minimizing the operating times of specific examinations to maximize the number of services provided per day does not require additional personnel or resources. The results of the experimental simulations can be used as a reference by radiology department managers designing scheduling rules for examination appointments.

患者从预约到接受磁共振成像（Magnetic Resonance Imaging，MRI）的等待时间通常较长。为缩短此类等待时长，本研究提出通过调整MRI检查排班、优先安排需使用同类线圈开展检查的患者，以减少服务时间浪费。该方案可缩短患者等待时间，同时最大化MRI科室的服务时长。为模拟MRI科室的作业流程，本研究采用了某医疗中心MRI科室的2447条包含患者与放射技师去标识化信息的MRI检查日志，并构建了融合离散事件模拟与智能体模拟的混合仿真模型。实验分为两个阶段开展：第一阶段通过调整检查排班、减少线圈更换次数以提升服务时长；第二阶段测算每日可额外接诊的最大患者数量。该医疗中心的四台MRI扫描仪每日平均线圈更换次数减少约27次，科室每日可额外获得97.17分钟的可用时长，每月可多接诊3名患者。医院月度净收入由此从17067美元提升至30196美元；针对使用柔性躯干-头部线圈、肩部线圈、8英寸头部线圈及躯干线圈的MRI检查，患者等待时间分别缩短了6天23小时、2天15小时、2天9小时及16小时。通过优先安排使用同类线圈的患者进行检查来调整MRI排班，可减少线圈设置耗时、提升每日接诊量、增加MRI科室净收入并缩短患者检查等待时间。无需额外投入人员与资源，即可通过优化特定检查的运行时长来最大化每日服务量。本次仿真实验的结果可作为放射科管理者制定检查预约排班规则的参考依据。