Advance mathematical model to study and analyse the effects of total quality management (TQM) and operational flexibility on hospital performance

Abstract

Total quality management (TQM) and operational flexibility are powerful and evolving management tools that are being implemented in many organisations worldwide, particularly in healthcare services. However, such implementation is yet to be seen in developing nations, particularly in health care. In an attempted response to such a gap, this paper provides a literature review on the principles and scope of TQM and operational flexibility in the healthcare industry and proposes a mathematical model, employing artificial neural networks, to study and analyse the implementation of TQM and operational flexibility dimensions towards improving hospital performance and reducing costs and medical errors. This study is the first of its kind in the field. The results yielded a very high degree of accuracy (more than 99.2%) in relating TQM variables and operational flexibility dimensions (inputs) to hospital performance (output), implying a highly accurate and strong model that can exactly determine the weaknesses in a hospitals performance and can define and pinpoint poor application of TQM and operations flexibility, particularly upon the development of system identification for this model.

Keywords:

• mathematical model
• ANN
• total quality management
• operational flexibility
• hospital performance