Question

The amount of time a person has to wait to be seen in a health clinic can be modeled by the equation 5h = x/4 + 2, where h is the wait time in hours, and x is the number of patients ahead in line.

What is the predicted wait time if there are 8 patients ahead in line?​

Answer 1

0.8 hours = 48 minutes

Explanation:

Given equation:

`5h=(x)/(4)+2`

where:

• h = wait time (in hours)
• x = number of patients ahead in line

To find the predicted wait time if there are 8 patients ahead in line, substitute x = 8 into the equation and solve for h:

`\implies 5h=(8)/(4)+2`

`\implies 5h=2+2`

`\implies 5h=4`

`\implies (5h)/(5)=(4)/(5)`

`\implies h=0.8\:\:\sf hours`

Therefore, the predicted wait time is 0.8 hours.

To convert this into minutes, multiply by 60 (since there are 60 minutes in an hour):

⇒ 0.8 hours = 0.8 × 60 = 48 minutes