Canadian healthcare readiness for public health emergencies

Abstract

Following the 2003 SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) outbreak in Toronto, there remains a concern that Canada’s healthcare systems are inadequately equipped to respond to a future public health emergency. Public health emergencies, defined as an emergency need for health care services to respond to a disaster, significant or catastrophic event, are economically costly. Effective prevention and responses to future emergencies would prevent economic costs like those from the 2003 SARS outbreak. An analysis from Hawryluck et al. of the SARS response identified major gaps: incomplete infection control, lack of system-wide communications, and no system-wide coordination leading to isolated, inefficient responses. More than a decade later, improvements have been made but there are areas in the infection control protocol that still require changes. More training is required for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel to effectively handle emergency scenes and to improve multiple agency coordination. Local hospitals need to improve their surge capacity, administrative emergency preparedness infrastructure, and personnel training. The creation of the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in 2004 responded to concerns about the capacity of Canada’s healthcare system to respond effectively to public health threats. At the provincial level, the Emergency Management Branch (EMB) works effectively similar to and in coordination with PHAC. The needs for improvement should question if Canada will be able to handle the next public health emergency that rolls through its door.