Understanding Capacity and Demand: A resource pack for healthcare professionals

Biography of Richard Steyn MSFRCSEd(C-Th) FIMCRCSEd MRCGPDRCOG

Richard S. Steyn qualified as a doctor from Aberdeen University in 1984. After completing vocational training in rural general practice (Taynuilt Medical Practice) he returned to surgical training in Aberdeen, Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham. In August 1999, he was appointed Consultant Thoracic Surgeon at Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust. His main clinical interests are oesophageal cancer and cardiothoracic trauma. He is also an active pre-hospital doctor with West Midlands Ambulance Service and Warwickshire Ambulance Service and was awarded the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal for his services.

He has been involved in the English cancer services collaborative from Phase I as a tumour specific lead (lung), and in Phase II as a regional clinical lead. He has led several initiatives including patient-led follow-up and taping patient consultations. His main interest however has been researching healthcare processes with particular emphasis on understanding the effects of variation and flow on the management of demand and capacity and the resulting waiting lists. He has developed several computer models to facilitate the understanding and teaching of the concepts that must be addressed to allow effective use of healthcare resources. He was appointed National Clinical Lead Demand, Capacity & Patient Flow with the NHS Modernisation Agency in December 2001 and National Clinical Lead Cancer Modernisation in March 2003. More recently he has been appointed as an Honorary Senior Lecturer with the University of Warwick.

Increasingly he is lecturing and consulting on healthcare process design and demonstrating these models both within the UK and internationally to facilitate the understanding of demand and capacity management and planning, queuing theory, theory of constraints and lean thinking as it relates to healthcare.

Richard's models and other presentation materials can be found at his website: www.steyn.org.uk .