Performance-Driven Design with the Support of Digital Tools --- Applying Discrete Event Simulation and Space Syntax on Emergency Department Design

The design of Emergency Department (ED) is rather complicated. Hospital leadership and architects have to make decisions taking into consideration many complex and interdependent factors, including evolving market demands, patient volume, care models, operational processes, staffing, and medical equipment. The application of digital tools such as Discrete Event Simulation (DES) and Space Syntax Analysis (SSA) allows clients and designers to quantitatively and objectively optimize their facilities. This paper presents a case study that utilized DES and SSA together optimizing the care process and designing the space in an ED environment. DES was applied at three phases: master planning, process improvement in the existing ED, and design of the new ED. SSA was used to compare the new design with the existing layout to evaluate the effectiveness of design in supporting visual surveillance and care coordination. 1 Present address: Department of Architectural Studies 137 Stanley Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, the United States email: [email protected], phone: (573) 882-7224, fax: (573) 884-6679 Frontiers of Architectural Research 1/5/2016 2 This case study demonstrates that DES and SSA are effective tools in facilitating design decision-making, reducing capital and operational costs, and improving organizational performance. DES has a special focus on operational process and care flow. SSA complements DES with its strength in linking space to human behavior. Combining both tools can lead to high performance ED design and may extent to broader healthcare context.