| Title: | Determining Optimum Locations for Emergency Dispensing Sites (EDS) in Worcester |
| Authors: | Shane White, City of Worcester |
| Date/Time: | Tuesday, September 23 ~ 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. |
| Abstract: | In the event of a biological emergency, the City of Worcester has 72-hours to administer doses of preventative medication to 176,000 residents. Prior to the involvement of GIS in the decision making process, EDS were chosen to be set up in the largest public schools in the city. The idea at that time was to have everyone in the city drive to one of five staging areas and then board busses to be brought to one of nine selected public schools to receive their doses. From lessons learned in the hurricane Katrina disaster, it became clear that a significant number of people in the city do not have access to personal transportation. Creating and overlaying a detailed population density map layer with the chosen EDS pointed out a glaring problem. Not only were none of the staging areas within walking distance of high population areas, only one of the EDS was within walking distance. It was decided to create a duel model approach to the problem. First identify public schools within walking distance of high population density areas. Second identify staging areas for the population living in low density areas that have access to personal transportation. |
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