The Relevance of the Methodology Hospital Safety Index to Ensure Work Health Care Facilities in Emergencies

Abstract

The objective: to analyze the existing methods for ensuring the safety of hospitals in the event of natural and man-made disasters, as well as the current regulatory framework for the safety and functioning of the healthcare facility during emergencies in Ukraine.Materials and methods. The study is based on the analysis of data from scientific and specialized sources of information regarding the state of hospital safety, including The Center for the Study of Natural Disaster Epidemiology at the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium), the International Disaster Database (EMDAT), and official WHO expert reports. Research methods were: bibliographic, synthetic, formal logic. A logical analysis of the data was conducted, summarizing the results, identifying the main causative factors of the deficiencies and the risk creating factors using complex data analys is and computer technologies.Results. WHO-recommended Worldwide Hospital Safety Index methodology, developed to implement a new approach to preventing and reducing the health effects of natural disasters, helps local authorities determine which agencies need to take appropriate action first to reduce vulnerability. Priority should be given to an institution where the safety of patients and staff is at highest risk during a disaster, or to an institution, where there is a risk of equipment damage or where measures are needed to maintain performance. It is established that the activities of any healthcare facilities ofUkraine are evaluated by three standards – management of the institution (including services and personnel), finances and material resources, as well as medical activity. According to the current legislation ofUkraine, the regulations governing the activities of the POPs do not provide for the assessment of the safety of carrying out the medical-diagnostic process in these institutions when providing medical assistance to patients and victims in the event of emergency situations. It is revealed that in our country the criteria and methods of assessment of hospitals’ safety are not fully adapted to the actual health care system, while at the same time there is no description and characterization of risks and factors that adversely affect the state of organization of medical-diagnostic process in the process of providing medical care to the victims in emergency situations that significantly reduce the capacity of healthcare facilities to function properly.Conclusions. Ensuring that hospitals operate in emergencies require the development and implementation of adequate response measures, taking into account the existing risks of technical and functional factors. The worldwide methodology for determining the Hospital Safety Index is an effective tool for assessing the safety and vulnerability of hospitals, adopting low-cost, high-efficiency measures to improve safety and emergency preparedness. It is appropriate to apply this methodology in Ukraine, taking into account the world experience in its use, but it requires adaptation to the realities of the national health care system and improvement of the existing legal acts.