User needs elicitation via analytic hierarchy process (AHP). A case study on a Computed Tomography (CT) scanner

Background: The rigorous elicitation of user needs is a crucial step for both medical device design and purchasing. However, user needs elicitation is often based on qualitative methods whose findings can be difficult to integrate into medical decision-making. This paper describes the application of AHP to elicit user needs for a new CT scanner for use in a public hospital. Methods: AHP was used to design a hierarchy of 12 needs for a new CT scanner, grouped into 4 homogenous categories, and to prepare a paper questionnaire to investigate the relative priorities of these. The questionnaire was completed by 5 senior clinicians working in a variety of clinical specialisations and departments in the same Italian public hospital. Results: Although safety and performance were considered the most important issues, user needs changed according to clinical scenario. For elective surgery, the five most important needs were: spatial resolution, processing software, radiation dose, patient monitoring, and contrast medium. For emergency, the top five most important needs were: patient monitoring, radiation dose, contrast medium control, speed run, spatial resolution. Conclusions: AHP effectively supported user need elicitation, helping to develop an analytic and intelligible framework of decision-making. User needs varied according to working scenario (elective versus emergency medicine) more than clinical specialization. This method should be considered by practitioners involved in decisions about new medical technology, whether that be during device design or before deciding whether to allocate budgets for new medical devices according to clinical functions or according to hospital department

Using AHP Approach, Evaluation of Quality: A Case Study with Respect to a Washing Machine Company

Supplier evaluation is performed by companies to continuously improve quality, to mitigate risks, to reduce costs or to improve performance. Thus, it forms an important and integral function that a company carries out to remain competitive in a given market. This paper attempts to propose a model that can assist a washing machine company to evaluate the quality aspect of its suppliers. This model is based on the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach, which follows the principle of the Linear Weighing Model. This paper is an attempt to give a variation of the traditional and a very common method that is widely used in many companies to evaluate the quality aspect – the quality history which is either about the percentage or parts per million of non-conformance components supplied. So, this paper suggests that along with the past quality history other parameters can also largely help in supplier evaluation and so this work has tried to identify the important criteria that may enable the company to not just evaluate the suppliers’ performance, but also to concentrate in those areas where improvements may be required. It also tries to exhibit how a multi-criteria decision-making method can ease the work of a Vendor Management or a Quality Department in evaluating the quality aspect of their suppliers

Web-based system for assessing risk factors for falls in community-dwelling elderly people using the Analytic Hierarchy Process

Falls occur frequently among older people and represent the most common cause of injury-related morbidity and mortality in later life. Preventing falls is an important way to reduce injuries, hospitalizations, and injury-related morbidity and mortality among older people. The research literature has identified hundreds of risk factors for falls among elderly people. Prioritizing risk factors for falls is useful for designing effective and efficacious prevention programs. The aim of this study was to use the Analytic Hierarchy Process to develop a hierarchy of risk factors for falls based on the knowledge and experience of experts working in this field

A Comprehensive Framework for Evaluating the Feasibility of Upgrading Road Category Based On Analytic Hierarchy Process - Case Study in South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia

The gap between the financing needs to the funding allocated by the state resulted in local government is hard to manage the road infrastructure. Solution offered is to change the category from district/municipally roads into provincial funded road and/or provincially roads into state funded roads. Since, there is no actual reference to these changes; this paper suggests a comprehensive assessment framework that enables to take a number of major quantitative and qualitative factors into consideration. Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is used to evaluate and rank these road segments with respect to prescribed criterions. Four road segments in South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia were subjected into 7 criterions with diverse metrics. Ranging from ???flow function??? to ???support system???, criterions defined by professional serve as multi-objective decision environment where sophisticated method such as AHP may play an appropriate role and consistently lead toward the final decision

The triangle assessment method: a new procedure for eliciting expert judgement

The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is one of the most widely used Multi-Criteria Decision-Making methods worldwide. As such, it is subject to criticisms that highlight some potential weaknesses. In this study, we present a new Multi-Criteria Decision-Making method denominated the “Triangular Assessment Method” (referred to by its Spanish abbreviation, MTC©). The MTC© aims to make use of the potential of AHP while avoiding some of its drawbacks. The main characteristics and advantages of the MTC© can be summarised as follows: (i) evaluation of criteria, and of the alternative options for each criterion, in trios instead of pairs; (ii) elimination of discrete scales and values involved in judgements; (iii) a substantial reduction in the number of evaluations (trios) relative to the corresponding number of pairs which would have to be considered when applying the AHP method; (iv) consistent decision-making; (v) introduction of closed cyclical series for comparing criteria and alternatives; and (vi) the introduction of opinion vectors and opinion surfaces. This new method is recommended for supporting decision-making with large numbers of subjective criteria and/or alternatives and also for group decisions where the consensus must be evaluated. The MTC© provides a different promising perspective in decision-making and could lead to new research lines in the field of information systems.This work was supported by the Galician Regional Government [“Programa de Consolidación e Estructuración de Unidades de Investigación Competitivas, modalidade de Grupos de Referencia Competitiva” for the period 2006–2017] and by the European Union [ERDF program]. Likewise, the authors thank Daniele de Rigo, Dora Henriques and Cesar Pérez-Cruzado, because his comments improved notably this manuscript.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

USING AHP APPROACH, EVALUATION OF QUALITY-A CASE STUDY WITH RESPECT TO A WASHING MACHINE COMPANY

ABSTRACT Supplier Evaluation is performed by companies to continuously improve quality, to mitigate risks, to reduce costs or to improve performance. Thus, it forms an important and integral function that a company carries out to remain competitive in a given market. This paper attempts to propose a model that can assist a Washing Machine Company to evaluate the quality aspect of its suppliers. This model is based on the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach which follows the principle of Linear Weighing Model. This paper is an attempt to give a variation to the traditional and a very common method that is widely used in many companies to evaluate the quality aspect -the quality history which is either about the percentage or parts per million of non-conformance components supplied. So this paper suggests that along with the past quality history other parameters can also largely help in supplier evaluation and so this work has tried to identify the important criteria that may enable the company to not just evaluate the suppliers' performance but also to concentrate in those areas where improvements may be required. It also tries to exhibit how a multi criteria decision making method can ease the work of a Vendor Management or a Quality Department in evaluating the quality aspect of their suppliers