An integrated decision model for managing hospital evacuation in response to an extreme flood event: A case study of the Hawkesbury-Nepean River, NSW, Australia

Yazdani, M; Mojtahedi, M; Loosemore, M; Sanderson, D; Dixit, V

An integrated decision model for managing hospital evacuation in response to an extreme flood event: A case study of the Hawkesbury-Nepean River, NSW, Australia

Yazdani, M Mojtahedi, M Loosemore, M

Sanderson, D Dixit, V

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Publisher:: Elsevier
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Safety Science, 2022, 155
Issue Date:: 2022-11-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Yazdani, M
dc.contributor.author	Mojtahedi, M
dc.contributor.author	Loosemore, M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3189-4655
dc.contributor.author	Sanderson, D
dc.contributor.author	Dixit, V
dc.date.accessioned	2022-11-22T02:09:46Z
dc.date.available	2022-11-22T02:09:46Z
dc.date.issued	2022-11-01
dc.identifier.citation	Safety Science, 2022, 155
dc.identifier.issn	0925-7535
dc.identifier.issn	1879-1042
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/163641
dc.description.abstract	The frequency and severity of floods is increasing in many countries, and hospitals play an essential role in protecting the community from their potentially devastating impacts. However, many hospitals are vulnerable to flooding having been designed and located without these risks in mind. In such situations, evacuation of vulnerable patients to safer alternative healthcare facilities might be the most reasonable response. However, there has been little research into hospital evacuation, and to address this research gap, this paper presents an innovative hospital evacuation model that can facilitate the optimal scheduling and sequencing of hospital evacuation under indeterministic flooding conditions. The proposed model combines a flood simulator and a mathematical model. Assuming the high levels of complexity of a realistic hospital evacuation system, a BendersDecomposition approach is developed to cope with large size problems. A case study in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, is used to illustrate the proposed model, and results confirm that the model can generate effective plans to evacuate hospitals in the shortest time possible in flood emergency conditions. The findings of this study contribute new theoretical and practical insights to a growing body of knowledge about disaster response strategies in hospitals and have implications for health service management and health policymakers in countries where health infrastructures are vulnerable to increasing climate change risks.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	Elsevier
dc.relation.ispartof	Safety Science
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.ssci.2022.105867
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess
dc.subject	09 Engineering, 11 Medical and Health Sciences, 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
dc.subject.classification	Human Factors
dc.title	An integrated decision model for managing hospital evacuation in response to an extreme flood event: A case study of the Hawkesbury-Nepean River, NSW, Australia
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	155
utslib.for	09 Engineering
utslib.for	11 Medical and Health Sciences
utslib.for	17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building/School of Built Environment
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access	*
pubs.consider-herdc	false
dc.date.updated	2022-11-22T02:09:29Z
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	155

Abstract:

The frequency and severity of floods is increasing in many countries, and hospitals play an essential role in protecting the community from their potentially devastating impacts. However, many hospitals are vulnerable to flooding having been designed and located without these risks in mind. In such situations, evacuation of vulnerable patients to safer alternative healthcare facilities might be the most reasonable response. However, there has been little research into hospital evacuation, and to address this research gap, this paper presents an innovative hospital evacuation model that can facilitate the optimal scheduling and sequencing of hospital evacuation under indeterministic flooding conditions. The proposed model combines a flood simulator and a mathematical model. Assuming the high levels of complexity of a realistic hospital evacuation system, a BendersDecomposition approach is developed to cope with large size problems. A case study in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, is used to illustrate the proposed model, and results confirm that the model can generate effective plans to evacuate hospitals in the shortest time possible in flood emergency conditions. The findings of this study contribute new theoretical and practical insights to a growing body of knowledge about disaster response strategies in hospitals and have implications for health service management and health policymakers in countries where health infrastructures are vulnerable to increasing climate change risks.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/163641