Evaluating COVID-19 Preparedness in Hospitals

Three components made up the questionnaire. The initial segment of the study concentrated on the participants’ backgrounds and demographic data (age, gender, educational level, and job position). The second segment entailed questions that describe and categorize the characteristics of the hospital (sector, geographic location, accreditation status and accreditation cycle, and scope of service pertinent to COVID-19). With regards to the scope of service, the focus was on whether the hospital was authorized to admit and deal with COVID-19 cases, or if the hospital was authorized to quarantine suspected cases and whether the hospital’s laboratory was authorized to deal with COVID-19 samples, or if the hospital dealt with suspected emergency department (ER) cases and referred them to other hospitals. The third segment dealt with emergency response focus areas. In that section, a three-point Likert scale was employed, and the questions were further divided into six focus areas. Each category addressed key emergency response domains. The selection of the questions was based on a literature review and the previously used WHO tool for the assessment of COVID-19 readiness of hospitals. Within the third category, emergency response focus areas included: Emergency preparedness, infection prevention and control, capacity building, case management, communication, and laboratory services. Section 3 was made up of 23 questions, each question was based on a three-point Likert scale (low—1 mark, medium—2 marks, and high—3 marks). The questions in Section 3 represented important steps in accordance with international criteria for emergency preparedness [1 ,9 ]. The questions addressed practices in relation to emergency preparedness during the pandemic. The tool asked the participants about the degree with which they agreed with the impact of each question on their readiness to provide care in the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants’ responses ranged from 1 to 3, and the average number of participants certified as having completed each portion was determined. The cut-off score for good preparedness and hence the quality of care provided during the pandemic was set at 83.5% (which was the average score value for the whole study sample).