Hospital administrator Doris Laughlin wants to staff the oncology ward using a standard 5-day workweek with 2 consecutive days off, but also wants to minimize the staff. However, as in most hospitals, she faces an inconsistent demand. Weekends have low usage. Doctors tend to work early in the week, and patients peak on Wednesday then taper off.

APPROACH c Doris must first establish staffing requirements. Then the following five-step process is applied