An Evaluation Study On Secondary And Tertiary Care Hospitals' Capacities In Public Health Emergency Preparedness In Beijing, China

BackgroundPublic health emergencies refer to the events that occur unexpectedly and can cause or potentially cause mass destruction to the public's health, including epidemics of public health importance, diseases outbreaks in the large population with unknown causes, large scope food poisoning and occupational poisoning, and other events that can severely affect public's health. They have a direct impact on public's health, economic development and society stability. Prevention and control of public health emergencies requires multi-sector effort and strong, effective leadership. Of all organizations involving in public health emergency preparedness, hospital is the key organization providing medical care and mental health services. Since hospital plays a central role in the early recognition, early diagnosis, early reporting, early quarantine, and early treatment, its capacities in public health emergency preparedness (CPHEP, 突发公共卫生事件应对能力) significantly influence the process and results in handling public health emergencies. Therefore, hospital's CPHEP is the critical component of a nation's public health preparedness system. However, that hospital has insufficient capacities in dealing with public health emergencies is a worldwide problem, China has no exception. The SARS crisis taught us the importance and necessity of CPHEP building. An evaluation of hospital's CPHEP is the initial step for hospital CPHEP building. However, up to today, evidence-based scientific research on hospital's CPHEP building is still to be seen. Objectives1. To establish an indicator system framework for evaluating hospital's CPHEP in China;2. To develop a comprehensive questionnaire suitable for hospitals in China to survey hospitals' CPHEP;...