ABSTRACT
As experienced in the current COVID-19 pandemic, emergency departments (EDs) are pivotal for hospital emergency care during outbreaks. Therefore, they should reorganize their operations to meet changing needs and increased patient arrivals, and be prepared for such disasters. This study addresses the problem of ED preparedness for outbreaks. A combined multi-attribute decision-making (MADM) model, including Bayesian best-worst method (BBWM) and reference ideal method (RIM) is proposed to solve the problem. Using the literature and expert opinions, 17 sub-criteria were determined under three main criteria as (1) ED time metrics, (2) ED medical staff and treatment area utilization, and (3) patient safety and ED preparedness level against outbreaks. A specially designed BBWM questionnaire was conducted with four healthcare professionals who had experience in the field to determine the importance weights of criteria. Then, RIM was applied to assess the preparedness levels of the observed EDs to the criteria weighted by BBWM. ED-1 was determined as the hospital most prepared for disasters. This approach is expected to guide decision-makers in assessing hospitals preparedness for epidemics and to be a helpful tool for their policies.
