An intelligent community-based system for healthcare prioritisation.

ABSTRACT: Healthcare rationing is unavoidable in systems constrained by limited resources. While decisions about who should be treated are ethically complex, they must reflect not only efficiency concerns but also socially accepted values. This study aims to develop a multi-criteria decision-support system - Vital Priority System, that prioritise patients using a Random Forest algorithm trained on multiple rationing criteria endorsed by Portuguese civil society. Based on a Portuguese online survey data, the model incorporates nine dimensions: clinical need, life expectancy gain, quality of life improvement, age, waiting time, parental status, lifestyle responsibility, and social role. Our results show that clinical need, expected treatment effectiveness, waiting time and age were the most influentia

SUBMITTER: Pinho M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12484544 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature