Enhancing hospital preparedness for respiratory pathogen epidemics and pandemics Good Samaritan University Hospital conducts a tabletop simulation exercise

The World Health Organization (WHO) conducted a hospital-based tabletop simulation exercise on 30 October 2024, in collaboration with the Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip, New York, United States of America. This exercise is part of WHO’s work to strengthen epidemic and pandemic preparedness, based on the Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats (PRET) approach. Participants were drawn from a broad range of stakeholders, including Good Samaritan University Hospital’s administration, medical staff and support services. Key participants included: 

• C-suite executives: president, chief operating officer, chief medical officer, and chief nursing officer. 
• Departmental directors and specialists: emergency department, intensive care unit, infection prevention and control, facilities management, critical care and emergency nursing, care coordination, security, pharmacy, medicine and surgical nursing, medical staff affairs, advanced practice providers, environmental services, information technology, public relations and infectious diseases.

The exercise, which is an adaptation of Exercise PanPRET-1, presented an opportunity to evaluate the hospital's preparedness and response capabilities in managing a respiratory pathogen outbreak. The exercise aimed to: 

• Test the hospital’s internal and external coordination and communication mechanisms; 
• Assess the hospital’s emergency preparedness and response, with a focus on human resources and logistics;
• Assess the hospital’s capacity to provide high-quality care to patients with limited English proficiency (LEP) patients and from diverse racial/ethnic and religious backgrounds; and 
• Test mechanisms for reviewing response actions and integrating lessons learned for future preparedness.

The simulation exercise involved a scenario where hospital personnel responded to a respiratory pathogen outbreak, allowing them to review and refine their hospital emergency plan, standard operating procedures, and communication pathways. The scenario, designed to simulate real-world conditions, emphasized the need for efficient internal and external coordination mechanisms. As the simulated outbreak progressed, participants encountered challenges associated with human resources, resource allocation and logistics management in a high-stakes environment, all of which underscored the critical need for efficient and adaptable emergency protocols. Additionally, the exercise addressed the hospital’s responsibility to provide inclusive and equitable care by testing the facility’s preparedness to support patients with LEP and from diverse racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds. This ensures a standard of care that meets the diverse needs of all patients during a public health emergency.

This first hospital-based PRET exercise yielded critical insights that will enhance future preparedness efforts. By simulating an outbreak scenario, participants identified gaps and strengths within the hospital’s emergency plan, ranging from refining communication strategies to fortifying cross-departmental collaboration and resource management. Notably, the exercise reinforced the importance of incorporating feedback mechanisms that enable staff to review response actions, document lessons learned and make necessary adjustments to improve readiness. 

The successful execution of this exercise represents an essential step forward in hospital pandemic preparedness. By testing and enhancing response capabilities in a controlled setting, this PRET simulation exercise has laid the groundwork for future initiatives to ensure that healthcare facilities are prepared to manage future respiratory pathogen epidemics and pandemics.

Reflections from the exercise

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Captions:

Photo 1: Exercise participants during the discussion session

Photo 2: Dr Uzma, Exercise Lead and Mr John McMurray, Chief Operating Officer of Good Samaritan University Hospital

Photo 3: Exercise participants during the discussion session