poidev function
poidev(mean)
Input: Real numerical values
Result: A value from the Poisson distribution with the given mean. A new random deviate is generated each time step.
The poisson distribution describes the probability of a given number of positive outcomes occurring in the limiting case of the binomial distribution, i.e., with very many trials each with a very small chance of a positive outcome.
This function is implemented using a pseudo-random sequence generator; notes regarding its behaviour can be found in the documentation for the rand_var function.
Example: A hospital serves a large community in which a certain percentage of individuals are thought to be carriers of the hospital superbug MRSA. If we admit a small number of individuals to hospital, we would expect the probability of getting a certain number of MRSA carriers in that group to be equal to the probability of getting that number as the result of this equation:
MRSA_positive_admissions = poidev(Total_admissions*MRSA_prevalence_percent/100)
In: Contents >> Working with equations >> Functions >> Built-in functions