ABSTRACT
In the aftermath of an earthquake, damage to buildings and transportation networks severely affects post-earthquake emergency rescue and medical healthcare services. This chapter presents a quantitative framework that considers seismic damage to buildings and transportation networks and post-earthquake available numbers of patient beds and medical staff to evaluate post-earthquake healthcare service accessibility. The modified two-step floating catchment area method and seismic fragility analysis are integrated into the proposed framework. Spatial distributions of demand point, hospital, and transportation network data are used to evaluate healthcare service accessibility. The accessibility results for a medium-sized city under normal conditions and post-earthquake conditions are analyzed as a case study. Demand points that lack access to healthcare service can be clearly delineated from the findings, indicating that large earthquakes will dramatically impact people’s normal healthcare service accessibility. The results of this work may provide a workable basis for planners and policymakers to pragmatically select healthcare facility sites.
