The effects of digitalization for consolidation of medical facilities: the conflict between voting and optimal outcomes about medical facilities location

Abstract

The advancements in digitalization through the latest technologies, such as 5G, will reduce the dis-tance resistance. Residents will be able to enjoy services from their homes, and coordination between hospitals will be smoother. A simple linear model was constructed in order to analyze how digitaliza-tion changes the theory of facility layout. By comparing the three types of facility layout in terms of both overall optimization and referendum, the following findings were made. First, the discrepancy between optimal and voting outcomes. Second, we showed that Digitalization between home and hospital reduces these discrepancies, and Digitalization between the two hospitals expands them, showing the difficulty of building consensus on facility layout under the digital age.