title: A multiple-drawer medication layout problem in automated dispensing cabinets.
abstract: In this paper we investigate the problem of locating medications in automated dispensing cabinets (ADCs) to minimize human selection errors. We formulate the multiple-drawer medication layout problem and show that the problem can be formulated as a quadratic assignment problem. As a way to evaluate various medication layouts, we develop a similarity rating for medication pairs. To solve industry-sized problem instances, we develop a heuristic approach. We use hospital ADC transaction data to conduct a computational experiment to test the performance of our developed heuristics, to demonstrate how our approach can aid in ADC design trade-offs, and to illustrate the potential improvements that can be made when applying an analytical process to the multiple-drawer medication layout problem. Finally, we present conclusions and future research directions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Systems, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA. jennifer.pazour@ucf.edu
authors.forename: Jennifer A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Pazour
authors.forename: Russell D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Meller
mesh_terms: D001331:Automation; D003198:Computer Simulation; D006801:Humans; D008508:Medication Errors / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008510:Medication Systems, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010607:Pharmacy Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D057188:Workflow