A practical tool for the preparation of a hospital crisis preparedness plan, with special focus on pandemic influenza

The usefulness of drafting a Crisis Preparedness Plan (CPP) is now undisputed. This document aims to offer a practical tool for planning appropriate measures to be adopted by a hospital and/or more generally a health facility in order to be better prepared to face a critical situation. The tool is the result of concerted contributions of various experts in the field of emergency services management. The recommendations provided are tailored to a medium-to-large hospital with various specialities included, and should be adjusted as appropriate at the different levels of health care of the health facility. This document provides a list of issues that are considered by the contributors as essential themes that must be tackled in all CPPs for hospitals. Each issue represents concepts and problems that are likely to be universally present in all critical situations, emergency or disasters and cannot be set aside when drafting the CPP. The document provides specific measures and hints for preparedness in the event of communicable disease epidemic, such as the possible influenza pandemic.