Optimization of costs policy in a geriatric queuing model with extra beds provision

The planning of a hospital geriatric department is a complex task, concerning both health care itself and the corresponding financial issues. The long-term geriatric services frequently occupy hospital beds for long periods of time incurring high costs. On the other hand, there are a lot of elderly people who are unable to obtain a hospital bed, because they are all occupied. The aim of this paper is to analyze the influence of the admission policy and bed allocation upon the hospital costs. Such methodology can be used by health service managers to optimize the geriatric department activity.