2010 IEEE Conference on Open Systems (ICOS 2010), December 5-7, 2010, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Development of Dashboard for Hospital Logistics

Management
1 2
Mahendrawathi ER , Danu Pranantha , Johansyah Dwi Utomo
Information System Department, Faculty of Information Technology, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember
Kampus ITS, Keputih, Sukolilo 60111
Surabaya, Indonesia
mahendra_w@its-sby.edu1, danu_pt@its-sby.edu2

performance. Based on this information they can then identify

Abstract- Logistics as an important process in providing high
quality and responsive health services has not received enough
attention in the literature to date. This paper presents an initial
work that attempt to fill this gap by developing a prototype of a
dashboard for logistics management in hospital XYZ. The
methodology used in this research is divided into intelligence,
design and implementation phases. The intelligence phase starts
with literature study, survey, gathering objectives and Key
Performance Indicator, and collecting necessary data. The design
phase consists of designing and constructing database, defining
presentation model for each KPI, and designing the storyboard.
The dashboard is developed based on the design in the
implementation phase. Implementation using several items as
samples has demonstrated the potential use of the dashboard. It
was found that the item category that contributes highly to the
total inventory value (50%) of the hospital has a low service level.
Further investigation shows that one item in this category has
very low service level because the amount of item received is
lower than demand. These findings can be used by management
as starting point to identify the root cause and take the necessary
actions to solve the problem.
I. INTRODUCTION
area for improvements.
Logistics aspects have not gained enough attention in
hospital management to date. Research in hospital
management mainly addresses the improvement of hospital
services through simulation [3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8] and scheduling of
doctors and nurses [9, 10, 11].
Tung et al [1] is among a few work that address
hospital logistics. However, it only focuses on investigating
the use of information systems in managing hospital logistics.
It does not specifically deal with the management of logistics
in a hospital.
This paper presents the work that attempt to fill part of
the gap by developing a prototype of a dashboard for logistics
management in hospital XYZ. The dashboard is designed to
display relevant information on the service level of key items
in an informative and interesting single display. The
dashboard will enable hospital manager to evaluate service
level of key items and quickly identify those that do not meet
the targets. This can be used as a basis to identify problems
and solutions in logistics management.

A hospital is required to provide the highest service II. DASHBOARD

to its patient in affordable cost. One of the processes in
hospital management that plays a crucial role in providing
high quality and responsive health services is logistic process.
Logistics management includes materials management and
fulfillment, instrument supply and management, and
procurement [1].
Logistics in a hospital is a complex process that deals
with various items with different characteristics and
requirement including pharmacy items (drugs, medical
equipment, etc) and non pharmacy items (office equipments,
foods and beverages, linens, etc). Hospital logistics
management also involves various stakeholders with varying
and often conflicting objectives.
Hospital must spend a lot of resources to keep and
maintain all the pharmacy and non pharmacy items. According
to Brennan [2] healthcare supplies comprise 20 – 30% of the
hospital’s total spending. This certainly becomes a burden to
the hospital, which may indirectly affect the patients.
In order to effectively and efficiently manage their
logistics, the hospital managers must first understand the
current logistics performance. Therefore, managers will need a
tool that can display relevant information regarding logistics
A dashboard is also known as a manager’s dashboard,
an executive cockpit, digital cockpit or a business scorecard.
Bose [12] describes a dashboard as a software application that
provides a single-screen display of relevant and critical
business metrics and analytics to enable faster and more
effective decision making.
A dashboard provides a summary of the critical
measurements needed to make the daily business decisions
that affect an organization’s performance. A set of Key
Performance Indicators (KPI) such as gross profit, inventory
levels, the list of current top customers, etc becomes the basis
of executive dashboard.
Dashboard has been applied in various fields. Phipen et
al [13] describes the use of monthly and weekly dashboards to
report the performance of a large multinational airline
company’s website including visits, visitors, registrations and
visits to bookings information. Schulz and Heigh [14] reports
the use of dashboard to show four indicators of regional
logistics units of International Federation of Red Cross and
Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). The indicators on this
dashboard are displayed in various ways. Some are displayed

978-1-4244-9192-6/10/$26.00 ©2010 IEEE 86

as monthly figures, some as year-to-date aggregation and
some in a chronological sequence.
According to Malik [15], the work on dashboard
presentation can be divided into three areas: design, layout and
navigation. He stated that a well-designed dashboard must
appeal aesthatically and able to utilize a limited space to
visualize a wealth of information. Some of the key elements
for a good dashboard design are: 1) screen graphic and colors,
2) selection of appropriate chart types, 3) relevant animation,
and 4) optimal content placement.
The color pallette used should not distract from the key
messages displayed on the dashboard. The next important
aspect in dashboard design is the chart selection. Rasmussen et
al [16] provides several guidelines in selecting the chart. Some
of the most commonly used charts are as follow:
- Area Chart is used to display trends over time or
categories
- Line Chart displays trends over time or categories
- Pie Charts display the contribution of each value to a
total
- Clustered Column Chart compares values across
categories
Some dashboard is also built with animation which uses
advanced visual capabilities (if provided by the software) to
meaningfully interact with users. The final aspect to consider
in dashboard design is content placement. The main principle
is to limit the dashboard content to the most important KPI in
order to avoid a sense of clutter that would overwhelm the
user [15].
The design of dashboard screen layout has to consider
three factors i.e. number of windows/frames, symmetry and
proportions, and screen resolution. The final area in dashboard
presentation is navigation. The whole information must be
divided across different screens. It also involves linking charts
and reports to allow user drill-down for greater details.
III. METHODOLOGY
The methodology used in this research follows the three
stages in developing business intelligence applications
proposed by Turban [17].
Figure 1. Dashboard development methodology
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As shown in figure 1 this research is divided into three
stages: intelligent phase, design phase, and implementation
phase. The intelligence phase starts with literature study,
survey, gathering objectives and KPIs (Key Performance
Indicator) from management level, and collecting necessary
data.
The design phase consists of designing and
constructing database for the collected data, defining
presentation model for each KPI, and designing the
storyboard. Designing the storyboard consists of conforming
presentation model of each KPI to the current available
technology, designing layout, determining dashboard titles and
labels, and determining dashboard functionalities (drill down
and/or alerts). The dashboard is developed in the
implementation phase based on the design. Finally, the
dashboard is reviewed for feedback.
IV. INTELLIGENCE AND DESIGN PHASE
This section describes the analysis and design
processes in developing the dashboard.
A. Intelligence Phase
This research constructs and implements dashboard for
measuring the performance of logistics process in hospital
XYZ. Hospital XYZ is a government hospital located in
Surabaya, Indonesia which has 44 units including inpatient,
outpatient, emergency unit, etc. All these units obtained their
pharmacy items from logistics unit.
The logistics process in hospital XYZ is still conducted
manually. The inventory data including item in and out are
recorded in stock cards. The entire logistics process is
evaluated quarterly.
The dashboard developed in this research is an
operational dashboard as it is focused on logistics unit in the
hospital. The first step in developing dashboard is to
understand the objectives and key performance indicators
(KPI) for the user. Based on interviews with management, it
was found that the main objective of the hospital is to provide
high quality service to the patient in affordable cost. In order
to support this, the logistics unit must provide the right items
as needed by their internal customers. In other words, the main
objective of the logistics unit is to provide high service level to
their customers. Thus, they need a dashboard that would
enable them to evaluate their service level.
Based on the objective, three metrics and three Key
Performance Indicators (KPI) can be derived. The metrics are:
inventory level, inventory value and number of item in and
out. The inventory level measures the average inventory that
the hospital maintains over a certain period. The inventory
value is an important metric to give an indication of the most
valuable inventory in the hospital. Finally, item in and out
show the turnover of the inventory.
The first KPI is inventory stock out that measures the
amount of items shortage over a certain period. The second
KPI is inventory service level that measures the percentage of
stock out occurrence over the number of times demand occur
in a certain period. Inventory fill rate is the last KPI that
measures the percentage of stock out over the total demand. inventory fill rate, the category menu will show two additional
Presentation model for each indicator are then designed based metrics i.e. inventory stock out and item in and out in the
on the characteristics of the indicators. corresponding category within a certain period.
Following the determination of objectives, metrics and More detailed information regarding two KPIs i.e.
KPI, data and information are gathered for the dashboard. inventory service level and fill rate can be obtained through
Pharmacy items in hospital XYZ is divided into four drill down functionalities. As shown in table 4, the pie chart of
categories i.e. medicine and herbs, medical instruments, all categories in general menu or pie chart of all items in a
reagent, and equipment. This research only focuses on the first category menu can be drilled down to show the value of each
three categories as the turnover for the last item is so low. In item in a certain period in the form of a table record. The
each of the three categories, several items noted by the inventory service level and inventory fill rate shown in general
managers as key items are used as samples for the dashboard. or category menu can also be drilled down for each item in a
In the medicine and herbs category three items are taken as certain period.
samples: alcohol, infus fluid PZ, and Invicloth. Spuit 3cc and Alerts are given when inventory fill rate and inventory
Muslin rolls are two key items used in medical instruments. In service level is below a certain threshold. Based on the
reagent category two items are used: Combur M10 and information obtained from hospital XYZ, this threshold is set
Glucose. The information for each item are collected for two to 50% for both KPIs.
years from 2008 – 2009. TABLE I
DASHBOARD MENU AND DRILL DOWN FUNCTIONALITIES
B. Design Phase
In the design phase, the presentation model of each KPI Menu for
General
Information each Drill down
obtained from the intelligence phase is constructed. As Menu
category
suggested by Malik [15], the dashboard uses neutral color for
the background and contrasting colors for the graphs. all items in
all categories each Each item (table
The dashboard is designed to have four menus that Inventory values
(pie chart) category (pie record)
include one menu for general information and three menus for chart)
each category of items used in this research. The general menu Each item
shows the overall service level performance of the entire all items in
all categories each (column chart)
category over the two year periods while the category menu Inventory service
(trend line category Alert for critical
shows the service level performance of items within that level
chart) (trend line level
category. Each menu shows the inventory value, inventory chart)
service level and inventory fill rate. Drill down functionality is Each item
all items in
provided for inventory service level and inventory fill rate in a all categories each (column chart)
certain period. Inventory fill rate (trend line category Alert for critical
The chart used is designed based on the characteristics chart) (trend line
level
of each metric. The inventory value is presented in a pie chart chart)
so that the user can see the contribution of each category or
items over the total value. V. RESULT
In terms of inventory service level and fill rate,
managers should be able to generally see the trend over A. Implementation
periods of time as well as compare the value for each item. The presentation model, dashboard layout, and
Therefore, line charts are used to represent inventory service functionalities in the design phase are implemented using
level and inventory fill rate in the general menu while column PHP. The application is tested to ensure that it works as
charts are used to display the KPIs in the drill down menu. planned. Results from the implementation are discussed in this
In this research, the dashboard is designed to have multi section.
dashboard screen. It consists of two rows and three columns to Figure 2 shows the dashboard layout for the general
show three to five metrics and KPIs for each screen with menu. The first chart that appears in the left side is the pie
proportion according to the order of importance. In order to chart that shows the contribution of each category over the
avoid screen scroll which is not ideal for a dashboard usage, total. Line charts for service level and inventory fill rate are
the screen resolution is set into 1024x768. displayed in the top right and bottom right of the screen,
Dashboard menus and drill down functionalities are respectively. In these charts, the X axis represents periods of
summarized in table 1. The user is expected to view the logistics (per quarter-year) from 2008 to 2009, while the Y
general menu in order to obtain overall service level axis represents the percentage from 0 to 100 percents.
performance of the logistics. Then, from the general menu The dashboard in Figure 2 can be drilled down into
they can navigate to category menu for more detailed items in each category. Figure 3a shows the total value of
information about the performance of each category. User can reagent category.
also go directly to each category by choosing category menu Figure 3b shows the inventory service level for each
and inputting the corresponding category and period. In item in reagent category. Since it shows the drilled down of
addition to inventory values, inventory service level and reagent category, the average service level for each item

88
within category in each period should conform to service level
in Figure 2 for the corresponding category.

Figure 3b. Inventory service level of each item in reagent category

Figure 2 Dashboard for all categories

For example, period P5 in Figure 3b has inventory

service level at 100 and 0 for glucose and Combur M10,
respectively. Summing up and averaging them will yield value
50 which is shown in Figure 2 for reagent category in period
P5. This case is also prevailed for inventory fill rate shown in
Figure 3c.

Figure 3c. Inventory fill rate of each item in reagent category

Figure 3a. Average of inventory values of each item in medicine and herbs
category

Each period of inventory service level and inventory

fill rate can be drilled down further. Figure 4 shows the drill
down of reagent category in period 5. Alert tables are provided
at the bottom of corresponding KPI charts. When the
inventory service level or inventory fill rate fall below 50%,
that item is printed in red and blinking.
Two additional charts that shows the stock out and Figure 4. Drill down of reagent category within period P5
number of stock in versus stock out for reagent category
within each period are displayed in the far right of the screen.
A link to a table that shows each item values in reagent B. The Use of The Dashboard
category within period P5 is provided in the bottom right of Based on the implementation several points can be
the screen. derived. Firstly, based on the general menu it can be seen that

89
the reagent category contribute 50% of the total value of all
items used in the sample, which means that it is an important
category. The performance of this category can be evaluated
by observing the service level and fill rate trends. It was found
that this category has a low performance where the service
levels are only 50% in six out of 8 periods. In period 8, the
service level even falls below 50%. Weak performance is also
found in the fill rate. The chart shows that fill rate only reach
50% twice over the course of two years. These trends indicate
problems which need to be investigated further.
Further investigation on the reagent category through
category menu shows that service level for Combur M10 in
period 8 is 0, which means that the logistics department cannot
provide this item when request comes. Still in the category
menu, the item in and out chart shows that there are less
Combur m10 item that comes into the logistics unit compared
to demand for that item. The cause of such a bad performance
need to be investigated so appropriate course of action can be
identified and taken to improve the performance.
Observation on the general menu reveals that medical
equipment category also has a high contribution (41%) of the
total inventory value. However, unlike the reagent category
the medical equipment have relatively good performance. The
fill rates of this category are always above 50%. The service
levels are always above 50% except for period 5.
The medicine and herbs category have the lowest
contribution on the total value of inventory. This category also
shows a weak performance where service level fall below 50%
in period 6 and 7 and the fill rate is very low in period 7.
Further investigation on medicine and herb category shows
that service level and fill rate of alcohol, which belongs to this
item is so low. In several periods, the service level and fill rate
is 0. This certainly needs to be improved as the demand for
alcohol is high.
These findings suggested that the dashboard have
served its purpose as a tool that enable hospital manager to
evaluate service level of key items and quickly identify those
that do not meet the targets. As the hospital currently has no
other means to conduct such evaluation, the dashboard is
regarded as a step forward to manage their logistics.
However, several gaps need to be investigated further.
Due to data availability, the KPI’s in this work are only those
related to service level. This is fairly limited compared to
previous work from Schulz and Heigh (2009) that include
financial control, process adherence and innovation and
learning as indicators. Thus, further work can add more
indicators to enable wider analysis of the logistics
management. There is also a need to add more detailed drill-
down capabilities in the dashboard to enable managers to
conduct more thorough root-cause analysis on the problems.
This is an area that we would like to investigate further in our
future work.
VI. CONCLUSION
This paper presents the development of dashboard for
evaluating logistics performance of hospital XYZ.
90
Implementation using several items as samples has
demonstrated the potential use of the dashboard. It can show
problem areas that the hospital can investigate further. It was
found that the category that contributes highly to the total
inventory value (50%) has performs badly in terms of service
level. Further investigation shows that one item in this
category has very low service level because the amount of
item coming in is lower than the demand.
The work presented here is still an initial effort to
address the issues of hospital logistics management. The work
can be continued by developing more detailed dashboard that
capture activities in the logistics process so more specific
problems can be identified and specific actions can be taken.
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