Improving Health-care Delivery for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: An Interrelated Approach Leveraging Systems Engineering and Optimization

摘要

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), major depression, anxiety disorders, and other post-deployment adjustment difficulties affect a significant number of veterans returning from Operation Iraq Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. To contend with this new influx of veterans suffering from the psychological aftermath of military combat, the VA has been proactive, including commissioning this study of their PTSD health-care delivery system. Its objective is to provide the best care, in the most efficient manner possible to as many affected veterans as possible. This study examines PTSD health-care delivery from a systems engineering perspective. It employs state-of- the-art tools such as: ExtendSim modeling and simulation software, and JMP analysis software. The resulting models produce a set of eight optimized system factors, which maximize the desirability of four system performance measures that define the efficiency, capacity, and timeliness of the system. We argue that these models can and should be used as a platform for future work in this area of study.