Author: Sergio García Quiles (University of Edinburgh)

Title: Mathematical Optimization Models for Healthcare and Children Adoption.

Abstract: This talk will show some recent applications of mathematical optimization models to solve some crucial problems in healthcare. Particularly, stable matching models will be used for the allocation of junior doctors to hospitals for a residency period. This is a critical stage in their careers. Each doctor is to be assigned to at most one hospital, whilst each hospital may be assigned multiple doctors up to some given capacity. Several variants, like incomplete preferences and couples, will be discussed. In this way we can model the assignment of medical graduates to Scottish hospitals as part of the Scottish Foundation Allocation Scheme until 2012, and its later amalgamation with other schemes as the UK Foundation scheme. Similar ideas are used to provide support to Coram, a UK charity, for pairing children with adoptive families. Finally, time permitted, I will illustrate other ongoing collaborations that we have with the NHS (National Health Service in the UK) for kidney exchange and for organ retrieval..