Evacuation of hospitals
Citation: Rojek A, Little M. Review article: evacuating hospitals in Australia: What lessons can we learn from the world literature? Emergency Medicine Australasia. 2013;25(6):496-502.
Language: Abstract and full text available in EN.
Free to view: No.
Funding sources: Nothing noted.
What is this? In this systematic review, the authors searched for articles related to hospital evacuations. They restricted their searches to articles published in English between July 1987 and October 2012. The authors excluded health care settings not identifiable as a hospital. They included 30 articles that described complete evacuations of hospitals.
What was found: The most common reasons for evacuation were disasters caused by natural hazards, usually related to storms. Comprehensive evacuation plans, including effective coordination with external organisations and regular simulations, were crucial for successful evacuations. Effective leadership and command structures were also important. The most common difficulties experienced during evacuations were the failure of communications systems, loss of utilities, and access to patient records.
Implications: The authors of the review stated that comprehensive, detailed evacuation plans supported by a national framework were essential for Australian hospitals. This framework should standardise planning and response across regions. Improved communication, resource planning, and collaboration between organisations would enhance the success of hospital evacuations.
Other considerations: The authors of the review did not discuss their findings in the context of issues relating to health equity.
This summary was prepared by Joly Ghanawi, checked by Grace Meng, and finalized by William Summerskill.