Analyze and Improve RedPharm's Service Operations ________________________________________________________________ Instructions:

1. Read the scenario below about RedPharm, a pharmacy located on a college campus.
2. Provide an analysis of RedPharm's flu shot service operations. Your analysis should include all the relevant performance metrics (L, W, L_q, W_q, u).
3. Suggest strategies to improve the service and provide your recommendations in response to specific feedback.

The Flu Shot Service Operations at RedPharm

For RedPharm, a pharmacy located on a college campus, fall is the busy flu shot season. The manager of the pharmacy wants to improve the customer experience because there have been a lot of complaints regarding the waiting time.

Table 1 shows the average number of customers arriving to the get a flu shot per hour. The coefficient of variation of the time between arrivals is 1.

Time Block	Average number of arrivals per hour
07:00-10:00	23
10:00-15:00	10
15:00-18:00	15

Table 1. Average number of arrivals per hour and average number of customers at RedPharm

RedPharm currently has four nurses who provide, explain, fill and collect the corresponding signed forms from the customers, and administer the immunizations. Data indicates that on average a nurse spends 10 minutes with a customer. The coefficient of variation of the service time is 1.

You can assume once a customer enters RedPharm's immunization are, they only leave after getting a flu shot.

The suggestion box has received notes, including one from a frustrated operations professor telling RedPharm management that they needed to redesign their flu shot service, starting with the implementation of an appointment policy, as well as one from an angry customer demanding nurses get their own waiting line so "customers can identify and join the one who is faster."

Provide Your Analysis of RedPharm's Flu Shot Operations

Answer the following questions, using as much space as you need.

1. Identify the peak and valley hours. Which of those time blocks will you include in your analysis? Why?

1. Using the averages of those time blocks, what are the corresponding performance metrics?

m (nurses)
A (customers/hour)
L (customers)
W (hours)
Lq(customers)
Wq (hours)
TS (hours)
S (customers/hour)
utilization

1. Are customer complaints justified? Why or why not? Specifically, how much time do customers spend in the system, and how much of that is spent waiting?

1. Provide at least two strategies RedPharm could implement to improve the current service process.

1. Why would an appointment system be beneficial in this scenario?

1. Given the service time of the four nurses, how many appointment slots per hour would be ideal? What would the utilization be with that many slots?

1. Should the system remain pooled, or should there be a separate queue for each nurse? Why or why not?