Emergency Planning Resources for Hospitals

The ability of a hospital to care for more patients during a public health emergency is critical. This set of tools provides step-by-step instructions for assessing and documenting surge staffing, facility and supply needs. The toolkit also includes implementation strategies, timelines and forms that can be adapted to the size and services of any hospital.

• Overview of the Patient Surge in Disasters: A Hospital Toolkit for Expanding Resources in Emergencies (PDF)
• Bed Surge Capacity Expansion Tool (PDF): Designed to assist hospital administrators and emergency managers prepare for and respond to unexpected increases in patient volume by pre-identifying expansion opportunities in existing clinical and non-clinical areas.
• Rapid Discharge Tool (PDF): Assists hospital administrators and emergency managers in preparing for and responding to unexpected increases in patient volume by providing them with adaptable plans for rapid discharge based on promising bed surge capacity practices.
• Rapid Patient Discharge Assessment (PDF): Assists hospitals in evaluating potential discharges and how patients' post-discharge care needs are met.
• Emergency Department Capacity Expansion Tool (PDF): Assists emergency planners in creating hospital-specific plans that identify and support expansion areas within and (preferably) nearby the Emergency Department.
• Intensive Care Unit Capacity Expansion Tool (PDF): Assists identification and creation of additional staffed and supported critical care beds during immediate and sustained phases of public health emergencies.

Worksheets

• COVID-19 Temporary Surge Tent Checklist (EXCEL)
• Bed Master Worksheet (EXCEL)
• Rapid Discharge Tool — Appendices B and C (EXCEL)
• Bed Surge Capacity Expansion Tool (EXCEL)
• Surge Capacity Expansion Tool for Critical Care (EXCEL)
• Surge Capacity Expansion Tool for Emergency Departments (EXCEL)

The following resources can help hospitals prepare to meet children's needs during a disaster.

• The Pediatric Disaster Coalition was founded by the Health Department to ensure the effective use of critical assets during and after a large-scale disaster affecting children. It is comprised of hospitals, public-health municipal services and community groups.
• Pediatric Disaster Healthcare Preparedness Toolkit: This toolkit is a collection of guidelines and templates designed for pediatric providers to create disaster plans for their individual healthcare sites. The toolkit offers comprehensive information on conducting exercises that can be used for revising and improving disaster preparedness plans.
• Children in Disasters: Hospital Guidelines for Pediatric Preparedness (PDF): These guidelines provide hospitals with useful, proactive strategies and protocols for providing protection, treatment and acute care for children during a disaster.
• American Academy of Pediatrics’ Resources: A variety of tools hospitals can use to improve their pediatric preparedness, including prioritizing high-risk populations and developing state action plans.
• Disaster Preparedness for Children With Disabilities: Durable Medical Equipment (PDF)
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  This document was created to help people caring for a child with a disability make better informed decisions about the child’s health and safety, and support the implementation of public-private collaborations in communities during a disaster.

Research conducted by the Health Department demonstrated a need for baseline training on Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive (CBRNE) incidents among hospital nursing staff. The department partnered with Columbia University to develop an awareness-level orientation/training approach comprising six curriculum modules, including five that are based on CBRNE events. This approach includes a 30-minute, self-paced online refresher training to support the initial train-the-training sessions.

For more information, email healthcareprep@health.nyc.gov.

The Integrated Explosive Event and Mass Casualty Event Response Plan Template (PDF) provides a framework for a hospital disaster response system that improves coordination and integration of the ED, ICU, Radiology, and Trauma Surgery when presented with an influx of patients. It coordinates the ICS response and outlines critical actions for each unit.

The New York State Department of Health's Regional Burn Centers and Trauma Centers receive patients and regulate care during an emergency.

The following documents provide recommendations and protocols to help hospitals prepare for chemical emergencies. They are only intended for discussion and development purposes.

• Decontamination and Triage of Chemically Contaminated Patients (PDF)
• Hospital Decontamination Protocols (PDF). Developed by New York Centers for Terrorism Preparedness and Planning, this includes protocols for the decontamination of:
  • Pediatric patients
  • Chronically disabled patients with prosthetic devices, assistive devices or mechanical ventilators
  • People who appear to suffer from acute behavioral disturbances or mental disorders

Providers can access tools and guidance documents designed to help health care systems identify, isolate, assess, transport and treat patients who have a suspected or confirmed special pathogen.