Emergent Dynamical Spatial Boundaries in Emergency Medical Services: A Navier-Stokes Framework from First Principles

Tatsuru Kikuchi

MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany

Abstract: Emergency medical services (EMS) response times are critical determinants of patient survival, yet existing approaches to spatial coverage analysis rely on discrete distance buffers or ad-hoc geographic information system (GIS) isochrones without theoretical foundation. This paper derives continuous spatial boundaries for emergency response from first principles using fluid dynamics (Navier-Stokes equations), demonstrating that response effectiveness decays exponentially with time: $\tau(t) = \tau_0 \exp(-\kappa t)$, where $\tau_0$ is baseline effectiveness and $\kappa$ is the temporal decay rate. Using 10,000 simulated emergency incidents from the National Emergency Medical Services Information System (NEMSIS), I estimate decay parameters and calculate critical boundaries $d^*$ where response effectiveness falls below policy-relevant thresholds. The framework reveals substantial demographic heterogeneity: elderly populations (85+) experience 8.40-minute average response times versus 7.83 minutes for younger adults (18-44), with 33.6\% of poor-access incidents affecting elderly populations despite representing 5.2\% of the sample. Non-parametric kernel regression validation confirms exponential decay is appropriate (mean squared error 8-12 times smaller than parametric), while traditional difference-in-differences analysis validates treatment effect existence (DiD coefficient = -1.35 minutes, $p

Keywords: Emergency Medical Services; Spatial Boundaries; Response Time; Demographic Heterogeneity; Navier-Stokes Equations; Continuous Functional Framework; Non-Parametric Estimation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C14 C21 C51 I18 R53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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