Abstract

In this talk I will explore some interesting operational research problems that have arisen in collaborations with healthcare partners in Brazil and in the United Kingdom. The applications include forecasting, inventory management, capacity planning, scheduling and sequencing, and patient pathway modelling, among others. These are challenging interdisciplinary problems that involve multiple sources of uncertainty and require careful modelling, as well as creative solutions to the many operational constraints that healthcare organisations face. The talk will include a few examples of studies that were implemented and discuss the overall trajectory from initial discussions, to modelling, to useful recommendations.

Bio: Edilson Fernandes de Arruda is currently an Associate Professor in Business Analytics and Management at Southampton Business School (SBS), University of Southampton (UoS). He is also the director of SBS' Centre for Healthcare Analytics. He has a background in Electrical Engineering, with emphasis on Operational Research and Optimal Control. He has experience in the fields of Engineering and Management Science, with focus on Optimisation under Uncertainty. His research hinges on the application of Markov processes and stochastic modelling tools to challenging real-world problems with underlying uncertainty. It includes topics such as exact and approximate dynamic programming, reinforcement learning and stochastic optimal control, logistics and supply analytics and healthcare management.