Emergency and disaster preparedness in the zonal hospitals in the Somali Regional State, Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Hospital preparedness is essential for effective response to disasters and emergencies. Nevertheless, empirical evidence about hospital disaster preparedness is scarce in most low- and middle-income contexts, including Ethiopia. This study evaluated the degree of emergency and disaster preparedness in general public hospitals in the Somali Regional State of Ethiopia. A facility-based cross-sectional survey was performed from May to July 2023 in four general public hospitals located in the Somali Region. Data was gathered utilizing Module 4 of the WHO Hospital Safety Index checklist, which evaluates emergency and disaster management preparedness across 40 indicators. The hospitals assessed demonstrated insufficient preparedness, attaining a moderate score of 45%. The preparedness for emergency and disaster response and recovery was the lowest, at 41.3%, among the seven evaluated domains. Substantial weaknesses were present in essential areas like emergency response planning, logistical readiness, financial administration, and communication systems. Hospitals lacked systematic communication strategies with the public and media during emergencies and failed to keep an inventory of external stakeholders for coordinated response initiatives. The findings demonstrate that general hospitals in the Somali Region are moderately equipped to manage emergencies and disasters effectively. Improving hospital systems for disaster management, enhancing communication and coordination, and preparing for logistical and financial issues are imperative. To make the region’s healthcare system more resilient and ready for emergencies, hospital administrators, regional health authorities, and the Federal Ministry of Health must work together. General Public hospitals in the Somali Region have moderate resilience to disasters, ranking emergency and disaster preparedness response and recovery as their least prepared area. The coordination of emergency and disaster management activities in the Somali Region hospitals is still ineffective, with a nominal structure lacking the proper functions of an incident management system and no assigned staff members. The communication and sharing of information in the Somali Region hospitals did not meet the expected level of readiness. No hospital plan in the Somali Region currently includes a full provision of psychosocial support to emergency victims during emergency and disaster events.