A light robust optimization model for a hierarchical healthcare network

PurposeA growing body of evidence points to the influence of location and allocation decisions on the structure of healthcare networks. The authors introduced a three-level hierarchical facility location model to minimize travel time in the healthcare system under uncertainty.Design/methodology/approachMost healthcare networks are hierarchical and, as a result, the linkage between their levels makes it difficult to specify the location of the facilities. In this article, the authors present a hybrid approach according to data envelopment analysis and robust programming to design a healthcare network. In the first phase, the efficiency of each potential location is calculated based on the non-radial range-adjusted measure considering desirable and undesirable outputs based on a number of criteria such as the target area's population, proximity to earthquake faults, quality of urban life, urban decrepitude, etc. The locations deemed suitable are then used as candidate locations in the mathematical model. In the second phase, based on the proposed robust optimization model, called light robustness, the location and allocation decisions are adopted.FindingsThe developed model is evaluated using an actual-world case study in District 1 of Tehran, Iran and relevant results and different sensitivity analyses were presented as well. When the percentage of referral parameters changes, the value of the robust model's objective function increases.Originality/valueThe contributions of this article are listed as follows: Considering desirable and undesirable criteria to selecting candidate locations, providing a robust programming model for building a service network and applying the developed model to an actual-world case study.