Running: Nonelective Flow DES

DES
Author

Dr Lucy Morgan

Published

October 7, 2026

Model overview

The Non-Elective Flow Simulation is an open-source discrete-event simulation developed by Helena Robinson at Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. It represents patients moving from the emergency department into SDEC or an inpatient bed and explores how bed capacity, admitted length of stay and SDEC activity affect queues and waiting times. The model is written in Python using SimPy and includes a Streamlit interface.

Sign up for this cycle is now closed. Please check back for future cycles.

All sessions

Actions for participants before the session

Open the model repository and follow the instructions to get the model running. Participants should aim to:

  • clone the GitHub repository and identify the files needed to get started;
  • create the supplied Python environment and install the dependencies;
  • start the Streamlit application and run the simulation;
  • reproduce an existing scenario and check that the run has completed as expected;
  • explore the existing controls and interpret the principal outputs.

Alternatively, participants can use CodeSpaces to explore the model without a local installation (see README for details). The aim is for participants to come to the session with a successful model run that they can continue to explore.

Session objectives and outline

This session will focus on discussing how participants experienced getting the model running. Participants will:

  • discuss any issues they encountered and how they resolved them;
  • share their experience of running the model and interpreting the outputs;
  • discuss what they learned from attempting to reproduce an existing model

Additional resources