Disaster preparedness of Australian hospital networks: a qualitative study with key actors

Disasters can have a disproportionate impact on highly vulnerable hospitalised patients. Managers preparing hospital networks for disasters play an important role in enhancing networks' readiness by creating disaster plans and imparting that knowledge through training and simulation exercises. The objective of this research was to uncover how those working in disaster preparedness roles in Australian hospital networks perceived the challenges that they face while ensuring adequate preparation for disasters.

A qualitative study design was employed which involved purposive sampling of Australian hospital network professionals responsible for disaster preparedness. Thematic analysis of data collected through individual online interviews generated prominent challenges of disaster preparedness in Australian hospital networks.

Local hospital networks across Australia PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-six disaster preparedness managers, including hospital executives, disaster managers, emergency management coordinators and business continuity managers from 23 hospital networks located in five Australian states and one territory, participated in semi-structured online interviews. Interview transcripts were coded through an iterative inductive thematic analysis process to synthesise the predominant challenges faced by these participants when preparing their hospital networks for disasters.

Participants reported four challenges: staff's limited interest in preparedness, budgetary constraints, staffing issues and ambiguous relationships with state and national health departments. They also presented four related solutions: capitalising on interest after disasters, attracting funding with evidence from prior disasters, facilitating staff's availability for disaster training and specifying network-government relationships for accountability.

Disasters, although infrequent, are known to occur and can be catastrophic, yet those working in hospital network disaster preparedness roles encounter limited availability of wider staff for training and low interest in disaster planning. The sudden onset of a disaster can take a heavy toll on patients if hospitals' staff are not sufficiently trained in disaster response or are not aware of the disaster plan. By identifying the perceptions of managers to disaster preparedness, this research presents specific challenges that hospital networks can address to improve awareness and preparation.