Optimal Model of Emergency Medical Supplies Stowage under Traffic Control during the Initial Period of the Epidemic Based on Characteristics Analysis of COVID-19 Epidemic

Abstract

In the initial stage, the epidemic area is relatively concentrated, and some traffic modes may be subject to traffic control. In this period, the timely delivery of adequate emergency medical supplies to the epidemic points will play an important role in controlling the spread of the epidemic. However, the existing emergency medical supplies loading optimization model has not taken the initial period of the epidemic as the research time nor fully considered the traffic control situation in that period. Therefore, combined with the characteristics of the initial epidemic period of COVID-19, this study establishes an optimization model for emergency medical supplies stowage at the rescue point, considering the variation in demand for different kinds of medical supplies at the epidemic point in different cycles and the impact of traffic control on the mode of transportation. The model is an integer programming model. The objective function is the least total cost, including total transportation cost and total inventory cost. The constraints include the supply limit of each medical material that can be provided by the rescue point, the transportation capacity limit of the transportation mode, the demand constraints, inventory constraints, nonnegative constraints, and integer variable constraints of various medical supplies in each cycle of the epidemic location. Finally, combining the development of the epidemic situation in Wuhan January 18–23, 2020, a case study was carried out, and the optimal combination of different transportation modes and different stowage schemes in different periods of the rescue point was obtained, which verified the feasibility and practicality of the model. The model constructed in this study can provide a theoretical reference to the optimal decision-making plan of emergency medical supplies of the implementation of traffic control during the initial period of emergency public health events.