Evaluating the disaster preparedness of emergency medical services (EMS) facilities: a cross-sectional investigation in Iran.

INTRODUCTION: The preparedness of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) plays a crucial role in managing health disaster risks. This study was conducted to assess the disaster preparedness of EMS facilities in Iran, using a nationally reliable tool. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in May 2021 to evaluate the disaster preparedness of EMS facilities in Iran using a national standard tool. The census sampling approach was utilized to select the samples, and descriptive statistics, as well as analytical statistics like the independent t-test and Pearson's correlation test, were used to analyze the data using SPSS-18 software. RESULTS: The findings of this study revealed that the majority of EMS facilities in Iran possess a moderate level of preparedness in dealing with disasters. Also, the results indicate that EMS facilities have an average level of preparedness against disasters in all dimensions except for "coordination and cooperation" and "surge capacity". CONCLUSION: According to this study, the majority of EMS facilities in Iran are exposed to different disasters. Furthermore, the findings indicate that while EMS facilities are generally prepared to respond to disasters at an average level, there are some important preparedness gaps in dimensions like response capacities, coordination, and cooperation. Thus, specific strategies, standards, and procedures must be developed and disseminated by the National Medical Emergency Organization.

COSMIN Checklist for Systematic Reviews of the Hospital Preparedness Instruments in Biological Events.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The purpose of this research was to evaluate the psychometric properties of hospital preparedness instruments in biological events. The Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurements Instruments (COSMIN) checklist has been used to design the appropriate hospital preparedness instruments in these events. METHODS: A systematic search was performed in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and ProQuest, Google Scholar for relevant literature until December 31, 2018, and the data were extracted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The quality of the identified studies was assessed per measurement property according to the COSMIN checklist. Twenty studies that met the inclusion criteria were included. RESULTS: The result showed that none of the evaluated checklists and instruments included all dimensions required for an appropriate hospital preparedness evaluation. The results revealed that none of the included studies reported adequate information on all the measurement properties of the instruments studied as per the COSMIN criteria. CONCLUSIONS: The information on their measurement properties was lacking. Thus, there was a need for evaluating measurement. However, a vital necessity is felt for developing an instrument with acceptable psychometric properties for measuring hospital preparedness in biological events. The present study provided improved clarity about the quality of currently available hospital preparedness instruments in the biological event and the results of this systematic review could be used to prepare a standardized instrument to evaluate hospital preparedness in biological disaster.