Solving Patient Allocation Problem during an Epidemic Dengue Fever Outbreak by Mathematical Modelling

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease that has rapidly spread throughout the last few decades. Most preventive mechanisms to deal with the disease focus on the eradication of the vector mosquito and vaccination campaigns. However, appropriate mechanisms of response are indispensable to face the c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Healthcare (Basel) 2022-01, Vol.10 (1), p.163
Main Authors: Tsai, Jung-Fa, Chu, Tai-Lin, Cuevas Brun, Edgar Hernan, Lin, Ming-Hua
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Dengue fever
epidemic
Epidemics
mathematical techniques
optimization
Pandemics
patient allocation
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Summary:Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease that has rapidly spread throughout the last few decades. Most preventive mechanisms to deal with the disease focus on the eradication of the vector mosquito and vaccination campaigns. However, appropriate mechanisms of response are indispensable to face the consequent events when an outbreak takes place. This study applied single and multiple objective linear programming models to optimize the allocation of patients and additional resources during an epidemic dengue fever outbreak, minimizing the summation of the distance travelled by all patients. An empirical study was set in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay. Data provided by a privately run health insurance cooperative was used to verify the applicability of the models in this study. The results can be used by analysts and decision makers to solve patient allocation problems for providing essential medical care during an epidemic dengue fever outbreak.
ISSN:2227-9032
2227-9032
DOI:10.3390/healthcare10010163