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This paper considers the use of treatment resources in a health service system. The particular aspect of system use which is identified is resource absorption - excessive use by a small subset of users and unmet need by others. A dynamic stochastic model for health status with treatment interventions is formulated and the distribution of accumulated treatment time (service) is developed. The characterization of heavy tails in the distribution, the essential feature of resource absorption, is based on the Lorenz curve and an Index of Resource Absorption is defined for any feasible Lorenz curve. The index is applied to the use of psychiatric hospital resources in a Province of Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies the variation in physician practice style among geographic regions and across time. A physician practice profile is defined and a simple model for profile variation is developed. Ratios are calculated for the components of the profile--ambulatory visit rate, hospitalization rate and length of hospitalization--and studied in terms of adaptation to resource constraint and nonspecific style. The methods are applied to hospital use in the Census Metropolitan Areas of Canada.

This article considers measures that indicate the degree of regionalization within a hospital system. In particular, regional independence is characterized with a "self-sufficiency" index. The basis of these measures is the use of facilities in one region by residents of another region, that is, interregional flows. Examples of the use of the suggested measure in the Nova Scotia hospital system are presented.