ORAHS2025
Abstract Submission

169. A Novel Cross-Entropy Heuristic for Location-Allocation Problems in Healthcare Applications

Invited abstract in session TA-3: Location and logistics, stream Sessions.

Tuesday, 9:00-10:30
Room: NTNU, Realfagbygget R9

Authors (first author is the speaker)

1. Mark Tuson
School of Mathematics, Cardiff University
2. Owen Jones
School of Mathematics, Cardiff University
3. Elizabeth Williams
School of Mathematics, Cardiff University
4. Paul Harper
School of Mathematics, Cardiff University

Abstract

This talk introduces a novel cross-entropy optimization heuristic designed to tackle the high-dimensional location-allocation problems often encountered in healthcare systems. These problems include critical applications such as placement of emergency response resources, equitable placement of public health clinics, and dynamic resource distribution during crises response operations.
With solution spaces often exceeding 1030 in size, these problems are computationally intensive and traditionally difficult to solve. We describe the heuristic and benchmark it against established methods across various test functions. While results are similar in low-dimensional settings, the heuristic significantly outperforms others as dimensionality increases. To demonstrate practical impact, we apply the method to real-world ambulance deployment data, showing measurable operational improvements.
The presented work advances the field by offering a scalable, effective solution to a class of problems known to be NP-complete, with potentially strong implications for both research and practice.

Keywords

Status: accepted

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