Background: In 2003, the Task Force on Quality Control of Disaster Management (WADEM) published guidelines for evaluation and research on health disaster management and recommended the development of a uniform data reporting tool. Standardized and complete reporting of data related to disaster medical response activities will facilitate the interpretation of results, comparisons between medical response systems and quality improvement in the management of disaster victims. Methods: Over a two-year period, a group of 16 experts in the fields of research, education, ethics and operational aspects of disaster medical management from 8 countries carried out a consensus process based on a modified Delphi method and Utstein-style technique. Results: The EMDM Academy Consensus Group produced an Utstein-style template for uniform data reporting of acute disaster medical response, including 15 data elements with indicators, that can be used for both research and quality improvement. Conclusion: It is anticipated that the Utstein-style template will enable better and more accurate completion of reports on disaster medical response and contribute to further scientific evidence and knowledge related to disaster medical management in order to optimize medical response system interventions and to improve outcomes of disaster victims.

BACKGROUND The World Health Organisation's (WHO) sixty-fourth World Health Assembly in May 2011 adopted a resolution on ‘strengthening national health emergency and disaster management capacities and resilience of health systems’. Disaster management is a topical issue globally and countries are being encouraged to improve their disaster preparedness, along with growing international commitment to strengthening health systems. Lessons identified from disasters have not been effectively collated; essential experience is forgotten. METHODS This paper describes the analysis of the worldwide experience of disasters through a health systems approach. A systematic search of the core literature from January 2000 to November 2011 was conducted. Components drawn from the WHO’s Global assessment of national health sector emergency preparedness and response baseline survey were combined with WHO’s six health system building blocks (or levers) to act as the initial analysis anchors, with a further grounded theory qualitative analysis of the literature allowing the identification of emerging themes and insights. The priority areas identified by this literature review were then compared with the topics covered by the new expert-consensus-derived Toolkit for assessing health-system capacity for crisis management developed by the WHO Regional Office for Europe. FINDINGS 143 publications identified from a literature search were analysed and appraised. Themes and examples from the literature demonstrate how health system strengthening should contribute to disaster management. Priority areas under-represented in the WHO Toolkit and identified by the qualitative analysis are discussed. INTERPRETATION Collation and analysis of the disaster management literature identifies how health system strengthening can promote resilience and efficient recovery in the face of disasters. These findings support and complement the WHO Toolkit. Countries can use the literature evidence with the WHO Toolkit to assess their disaster management capacities and identify priorities for strengthening their health system. Citation: Bayntun C, Rockenschaub G, Murray V. Developing a health system approach to disaster management: A qualitative analysis of the core literature to complement the WHO Toolkit for assessing health-system capacity for crisis management. PLOS Currents Disasters. 2012 Aug 22. doi: 10.1371/5028b6037259a.

The proposed guidelines for a common structure for reports on health crises and critical health events are an attempt of capturing the experiences gained and a further step for promoting a standardized methodology for sharing results and experiences. Such a common and standardized approach will facilitate the analysis and comparison of findings in order to improve preparedness planning and response and advance international collaboration and learning. If future reporting follows common standards, then the documented findings would be comparable and could be used to learn and apply lessons within an individual field of activity and to apply those lessons learned also to other related preparedness activities. It could also facilitate the implementation of joint activities and joint reports involving different sectors.

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ObjectivesHospitals play a critical role in communities to provide essential medical care during all types of disaster. Depending on their scope and nature, disasters can lead to rapidly increasing service demand that can overwhelm the functional capacity and safety of hospitals and the health care system at large. The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe All-Hazard Hospital Emergency Preparedness Checklist aims to assist hospital administrators and disaster managers in preparing health facilities to respond effectively to the most likely disaster scenarios.MethodsA checklist tool was developed that comprises current hospital-based emergency management principles and techniques, and integrates applications specific to hospital preparedness needs in the WHO European Region.ResultsA list of recommended actions within critical service categories is provided in a step-wise, all-hazard form for rapid implementation by hospital administrators and disaster managers in response to the most likely types of disaster.ConclusionsThe principles and recommendations provided in this tool may be used by hospitals at any level of emergency preparedness. The checklist is not intended to replace standards and protocols already defined in hospital emergency management plans. Rather, it provides recommendations to enhance existing plans in concert with national guidelines.