Modeling to Optimize Hospital Evacuation Planning in EMS Systems.

Area of Science:

• Emergency Medicine
• Operations Research
• Public Health Policy

Background:

• Effective hospital evacuation planning is critical for urban emergency medical services (EMS) systems during mass casualty incidents.
• Existing planning methods may not fully account for complex resource constraints and dynamic scenarios.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop optimal hospital evacuation plans using a novel evacuation planning model within a large urban EMS system.
• To illustrate the utility of a decision support model for enhancing hospital evacuation planning.

Main Methods:

• An optimization model was employed to generate detailed evacuation plans.
• Input parameters included patient demographics, available resources (transport teams, vehicles, receiving hospital beds), and evacuation protocols.

Main Results:

• Optimal evacuation plans were generated under varied resource levels and rules.
• Key metrics such as evacuation duration and resource utilization were calculated.
• The model identified critical resource limitations and demonstrated performance improvements through strategic resource augmentation.

Conclusions:

• The developed optimization model provides a valuable tool for EMS administrators and medical directors.
• It aids in guiding planning decisions and understanding the impact of resource allocation and rules on hospital evacuations.