Minerva anestesiologica
-
Minerva anestesiologica · Dec 2016
Multicenter StudyHospital disaster preparedness in Italy: a preliminary study utilizing the World Health Organization hospital emergency response evaluation toolkit.
Natural and human-initiated disasters are occurring with greater devastating consequences and increased frequency. During these events, hospitals have the burden to care for acutely ill and injured patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of disaster preparedness of Italian hospitals. ⋯ The study revealed that a large majority of Italian hospitals evaluated are not well prepared to manage potential disasters. Also, all important elements of hospital preparedness, such as the command system, surge capacity, and safety, were insufficiently implemented. Nationwide standards, guidelines and procedures are required to improve hospital disaster preparedness in Italy.