Clark, David Allen

Healthcare processes have variability embedded within care delivery systems. Process mapping has been traditionally used to study processes, and is based on human perceptions of how the process is structured and how care is delivered. Process mapping can be biased based on individual perceptions and not comprehensive to capture variability. Radio frequency identification (RFID) provides a more objective means for collecting process-related data. This paper discusses process mapping, its benefits and drawbacks, and how RFID can complement process mapping. Qualitative information (process mapping) and quantitative information (data collected using RFID and from other sources) can potentially be combined to develop process models. Such models can inform process improvement and increase safety and efficiency.

Healthcare processes have variability embedded within care delivery systems. Healthcare providers and managers need visibility of the process to understand variability, and make process design changes, to improve safety and efficiency. Process mapping has been traditionally used to study processes, and is based on perceptions. However, to better understand and manage variability, there is an urgent need for process mining techniques. Process mining requires data for validation, to increase understanding and/or change perceptions and improve visibility. Radio frequency identification (RFID) can be used for collecting process-related data and can eliminate data quality issues. This paper discusses process mining and its application in healthcare, summarizes process mapping and RFID, and proposes an integration framework and method to improve visibility.