Assessing Preparedness and Awareness of Hospital Managers in the Face of Natural Disasters in 2022: A Case Study in Gilan, Iran

Background: Preparing hospitals for disasters and accidents is one of the fundamental elements of governmental planning to manage, control, or minimize consequences. This study aims to examine the level of preparedness and awareness of public hospital managers in the western region of Gilan Province in the face of natural disasters. Methods: This applied cross-sectional study was conducted in 2022. The research population consisted of all public hospitals affiliated with Gilan University of Medical Sciences (a total of 8 hospitals and 56 managers). Data were collected using the standard checklist of the hospital preparedness in the face of natural disasters, and a questionnaire to assess managers’ awareness. Data were analyzed with the SPSS version 22 and Spearman’s statistical tests were used to analyze the association between managers’ awareness and hospital preparedness. Results: The score mean of managers’ awareness and preparedness of hospitals to deal with disasters were 44.23 (6.69) and 61.73 (12.96), respectively. Among the various managerial groups, nursing managers demonstrated the highest level of awareness (51.62), whereas medical records managers showed the lowest level (37.50). The area focusing on managing unforeseen events had the highest mean score of preparedness 73.11 (18.03), and the area of planning to reduce construction risks had the lowest mean score of preparedness (44.64). Spearman’s correlation test revealed a direct and statistically significant relationship between managers’ awareness and hospital preparedness in West Gilan (r = 0.586) (p 0.001). Conclusion: The level of preparedness and awareness of government managers in the West Gilan hospitals, concerning natural disasters, was at an average level. Enhancing hospital preparedness in the face of natural disasters could be achieved through the standardization of hospital infrastructure, training of all unit officials, and the promotion of equipment safety.