A sequential space syntax approach for healthcare facility layout design

This paper presents a two-phase approach for solving the facility layout problem in a physical rehabilitation hospital. The first phase solves the block layout problem, where the relative location and size of the departments in the facility are determined. The model used in this phase is based on Space Syntax which offers a series of tools that can be used to analyze and quantify spatial relations that are useful when modeling block layouts. Two Space Syntax-based metrics are introduced to model proximity and ease of access in layout designs, critical qualities in health care settings. A tabu search algorithm based on a novel nested-bay encoding is used to find the block layouts. A set of test cases from a large provider of rehabilitation hospitals shows the ability of this approach to handle healthcare-specific design requirements. An important concern for physical rehabilitation hospitals, where a large portion of the patient population is especially vulnerable to infectious diseases, and which has gained greater attention due to the COVID pandemic, is infection control. The approach herein is more capable of addressing control of infectious disease than existing metrics by providing designers with more granular control of space separation. Results show that the Space Syntax approach provides powerful, but easy to use, modeling capabilities, and that the resulting block layouts are more realistic. The second phase model is a mixed integer program for constructing corridor networks on a block layout that minimize travel distance, number of intersections, and maximum traffic on a turn. Both models are configurable so that facility designers can generate different designs according to their goals by changing the model parameters.