Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2012 Oct 25;1(1):40.
doi: 10.1186/2045-4015-1-40.

Evidence-based support for the all-hazards approach to emergency preparedness

Bruria Adini  1 , Avishay Goldberg, Robert Cohen, Daniel Laor, Yaron Bar-Dayan
Affiliations

Evidence-based support for the all-hazards approach to emergency preparedness

Bruria Adini et al. Isr J Health Policy Res. .

Abstract

Background: During the last decade there has been a need to respond and recover from various types of emergencies including mass casualty events (MCEs), mass toxicological/chemical events (MTEs), and biological events (pandemics and bio-terror agents). Effective emergency preparedness is more likely to be achieved if an all-hazards response plan is adopted.

Objectives: To investigate if there is a relationship among hospitals' preparedness for various emergency scenarios, and whether components of one emergency scenario correlate with preparedness for other emergency scenarios.

Methods: Emergency preparedness levels of all acute-care hospitals for MCEs, MTEs, and biological events were evaluated, utilizing a structured evaluation tool based on measurable parameters. Evaluations were made by professional experts in two phases: evaluation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) followed by a site visit. Relationships among total preparedness and different components' scores for various types of emergencies were analyzed.

Results: Significant relationships were found among preparedness for different emergencies. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for biological events correlated with preparedness for all investigated emergency scenarios. Strong correlations were found between training and drills with preparedness for all investigated emergency scenarios.

Conclusions: Fundamental critical building blocks such as SOPs, training, and drill programs improve preparedness for different emergencies including MCEs, MTEs, and biological events, more than other building blocks, such as equipment or knowledge of personnel. SOPs are especially important in unfamiliar emergency scenarios. The findings support the adoption of an all-hazards approach to emergency preparedness.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Average overall preparedness scores of all general hospitals for different emergency scenarios.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Sauer LM, McCarthy ML, Knebel A, Brewster P. Major influences on hospital emergency management and disaster preparedness. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2009;3(2 Suppl):S68–S73. - PubMed
    1. Levy LA, Rokusek CF, Bragg SM, Howell JT. Interdisciplinary approach to all-hazards preparedness: are you ready? How do we know? J Public Health Manag Pract. 2009;15(2 Suppl):S8–S12. - PubMed
    1. Taylor L, Miro S, Bookbinder SH, Slater T. Innovative infrastructure in New Jersey: using health education professionals to inform and educate during a crisis. Health Promot Pract. 2008;9(4 Suppl):88S–95S. doi: 10.1177/1524839908321944. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Godschalk DR, Rose A, Mittler E, Porter K, West CT. Estimating the value of foresight: aggregate analysis of natural hazard mitigation benefits and costs. J Environ Manage. 2009;52(6):739–756.
    1. Briere J. Rapid restoration of critical infrastructures: an all-hazards paradigm for fusion centers. Int J Crit Infras. 2011;7(1):21–36. doi: 10.1504/IJCIS.2011.038954. - DOI

LinkOut - more resources