Discrete-Event Modeling of Human Behavior for Spread of Diseases on University Campuses

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of defining sound policies to make attending workplaces safe. Sometimes, deciding on different policies is challenging as this highly depends on the behavior of the individuals. We introduce a Discrete Event based method to study such policies, including human behavior along with information about the workplace layout and building characteristics such as ventilation rate or room capacity. We exemplify how to use this method using the case study of Carleton’s University Campus. We introduce a case study focusing on the effect of the ventilation policy on the number of disease cases on campus.