152. Matching Employee Preferences - Implementing a Learning Scheduling System for Healthcare Shift Workers
Contributed abstract in session ME-5: Workforce Planning, stream Regular talks.
Monday, 15:30-16:40Room: Room S6
Authors (first author is the speaker)
| 1. | Arne Henning Witteborg
|
| Institute for Technological Innovation, Market Development and Entrepreneurship (iTIME), Bielefeld University | |
| 2. | Michael Römer
|
| Decision Analytics Group, Bielefeld University |
Abstract
In healthcare, particularly within hospitals, the optimization of shift scheduling for medical staff poses a significant challenge. The scheduling of employees is compounded by the need to balance operational efficiency with employee satisfaction, amidst high burnout and turnover rates. Our cooperation with a hospital in Bielefeld led to a conceptual framework aimed at identifying and incorporating healthcare workers' scheduling preferences into an optimization model. This approach explores the implementation of a learning scheduling system tailored for physicians, focusing on the integration of individual preferences into an optimization model. In order to take their preferences into account, they must be known and formalized. Since preferences for schedules could often not be explicitly articulated and are rather implicit, a critical aspect of realizing such a model involves the recognition and formalization of employee preferences. Through a three-step approach involving qualitative interviews, learning and integrating preferences from a focus group and evaluation of the system's acceptance, we aim to demonstrate how a preference learning approach can provide a possible solution through learning meta-parameters for individual customization and incorporating them in a linear programming model. With this approach we address the critical need for an adaptive scheduling system that respects the needs of employees, potentially leading to higher employee satisfaction.
Keywords
- Staffing and capacity planning
- Workforce planning and scheduling
- Healthcare management
Status: accepted
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