A numerical simulation-based solution for enhancing the safety evacuation of the high-rise complex in geriatric hospital

Abstract

Due to the vulnerability of the elderly population and the specificity of the treatment environment, geriatric hospitals face more serious fire safety issues than ordinary medical buildings. Existing conclusions are mostly one-sided as researchers have mainly ignored the diversity of geriatric patients and the types of functional rooms in the buildings. To make the findings in this field completer and more adequate, a geriatric hospital high-rise was employed as a case study and simulated in Pathfinder software. This model evaluated the efficacy of hierarchical organization of evacuating crowds, modification of vertical functional zoning, and specific congestion mitigation measures. The synthesized outcomes from these evaluations informed the development of an integrated evacuation strategy. Output parameters were used in place of control variables to verify repeatability. Crowd prioritization improve evacuation efficiency by optimizing the evacuation sequence and reducing the crossing of people; vertical functional zoning modification avoid congestion by locating high-risk departments near the bottom, for example; and blockage point evacuation enhance evacuation speed by adjusting the location of exits and improving the design of staircases. This comprehensive strategy successfully reduces evacuation time by 28.8 % and can be used as a guideline for a generic evacuation optimization system for similar buildings.