Implementation of the Hospital Emergency Incident Command System during an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) at a hospital in Taiwan, ROC.
We sought to describe the implementation of the Hospital Emergency Incident Command System (HEICS) at National Cheng Kung University Hospital (NCKUH) in Taiwan, ROC during the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in early 2003. We administered a 14-question survey via structured interviews to individuals occupying activated HEICS leadership positions at NCKUH to identify the organization, structure, and function of the HEICS units and subunits they led and the job actions they performed from 25 March to 16 June 2003 Thirty-three of 38 persons (87%) occupying 39 of 44 (89%) activated HEICS leadership positions directly participated in the survey. The participants collectively reported: 1) the creation of four new HEICS unit leader positions and corresponding units during the outbreak, including the infection control officer (administrative section) and SARS assessment, isolation, and critical care unit leaders (operations section); 2) the creation of six new HEICS subunits, including functional areas for fever screening, SARS assessment, and resuscitation outside the hospital, and SARS patient care, SARS critical care, and employee isolation inside the hospital; and 3) the performance of new job actions related to infection control by all HEICS unit leaders. HEICS provides a flexible framework that seems to have assisted NCKUH in the organization of its emergency response to the SARS outbreak in Taiwan, ROC.
Tsai
Ming-Che
MC
National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Arnold
Jeffrey L
JL
Chuang
Chia-Chang
CC
Chi
Chih-Hsien
CH
Liu
Ching-Chuan
CC
Yang
Yu-Jen
YJ
D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006747:Hospital Communication Systems / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000458:organization & administration; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology