Planning for Disasters and Emergencies in the Health System

Seyedin, SH; Rouhi, N; Dehnavi, R; Bahrami, M

Planning for Disasters and Emergencies in the Health System

Document Type : Short Communication

Authors

SH Seyedin

N Rouhi

R Dehnavi

M Bahrami

Associate Professor of Health Services Management, School of Health Management and Information Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The history of disasters dates back to the formation of the earth. Usually, after each disaster, hospitals and health centers deal with surge of causalities. Therefore, they must not only treat inpatients but also the patients who attend the system as a result of the disasters. This may create insufficiency or lack of drugs, instruments, and human resources. One solution to solve the problem is to plan for preparations for such events. This includes three types of planning. A comprehensive plan helps the health system to put into action the command system, and is applicable to all types of disasters. Contingency plan is scenario-based and is designed for the most probable internal or external disasters, and the risk analysis helps to decide appropriate scenarios. Finally business continuity plan helps to serve the routine patients in hospitals or health centers. These plans help the system to respond, with safe and high quality services, to the patients during disasters. This paper illustrates and clarifies the three above-mentioned types of plans.

Keywords

Disasters

Emergencies

Health System