Applying the Haddon Matrix to Hospital Earthquake Preparedness and Response

Barriers to achieving satisfactory dropped objects safety performance in the UK construction sector

In 1980 a deadly explosion occurred at a nuclear missile base precipitated by a dropped object. The potential for major catastrophe, an industry call to action and a research gap forms the rationale for this research into dropped objects. The aim of the research was to devise guidance to assist United Kingdom (UK) based construction sector companies to reduce the frequency of dropped object incidents. A mixed research approach that includes literature review, semi-structured interviews and case studies were used to achieve the purpose of this research. The trend data revealed that dropped object incident rates have remained flat in recent years. The quantitative incident reports and qualitative feedback from interviews concluded that design is a contributory factor in a significant number of incidents and possibly in many cases but more research with a larger quantitative research sample is required. The interviews and literature review revealed several useful recommendations to sector bodies, construction sector companies and for further academic research. Recommendations to Individual Construction Sector Companies are grouped into different themes including manage, eliminate and control. The main recommendations to regulators included ensuring that tool tethering and containers are marked and inspected in line with other lifting equipment. Industry bodies could consider liaising with the energy industry to develop a suitable general construction exclusion zone calculator. Initiatives to improve the design of Mast Climbing Work Platforms to provide integral storage and enclosure solutions could be initiated with the vendors of this equipment. Practitioners and companies could consider offsite construction as a strategic means to reduce the number of dropped objects and consider work scopes that could be executed at ground level rather than at height. Consideration could be given to the more commonly deployed off-site fabrication options such as façade panels and bathroom pods. During detailed design, companies could have a high focus on the mechanism of reducing fixings in facades using Building Information Modelling. There are a number of areas which can be investigated further such as the implications of offsite construction on dropped objects accidents when compared with traditional methods. The research findings hint that Business Information Modelling might be a useful tool to reduce dropped objects on construction sites especially related to facades. While there were several limitations of the research including a limited amount of quantitative data and availability of the specific interview group, the findings of the research will still be useful for the construction sector in the UK and overseas to improve safety performance in construction.

Applying the Haddon Matrix to Frontline Care Preparedness and Response in Asymmetric Warfare

Introduction:

Asymmetric warfare and the reaction to its threats have implications in the way far-forward medical assistance is provided in such settings. Investments in far-forward emergency resuscitation and stabilization can contribute to saving lives and increase the resilience of health systems. Thus, it is proposed to extend the use of the Haddon Matrix to determine a set of strategies to better understand and prioritize activities to prepare for and set-up frontline care in the form of Trauma Stabilization Points (TSPs).

Methods:

An expert consensus methodology was used to achieve the research aim. A small subject matter experts’ group was convened to create and validate the content of the Haddon Matrix.

Results:

The result of the expert group consultations presented an overview of TSP Preparedness and Operational Readiness activities within a Haddon Matrix framework. Main strategies to be adopted within the cycle from pre- to post-event had been identified and presented considering the identified opportunities in the context of the possibility of implementation. Of particular importance was the revision of a curriculum that fits the civilian medical system and facilitates its adaptation to the context and available resources.

Conclusion:

The new framework to enhance frontline care preparedness and response using the Haddon Matrix facilitated the identification of a set of strategies to support frontline health care workers in a more efficient manner. Since the existing approach and tools are insufficient for modern warfare, additional research is needed.

Developing Hospital Emergency and Disaster Management Index Using TOPSIS Method

Indonesia is a country prone to experiencing natural hazards and disasters, which have frequently damaged public infrastructure, including hospitals. The role of hospitals is crucial to alleviate the impact of disasters. However, there is still a lack of study that analyzes the factors that influence the readiness of hospitals in emergency situations. Filling in this gap, the aim of this paper is to analyze and rank hospitals across West Java and Yogyakarta, Indonesia by the resilience of their emergency management approaches. This research seeks to measure hospital resiliency during emergencies and disasters. Results indicate that the emergency and disaster management coordination, response and disaster recovery planning, communication and information management, logistics and evacuation, human resources, finance, patient care and support services, decontamination and security are key attributes for the decision-making matrix. Based on the Hospital Safety Index tool, this research proposes the Hospital Emergency and Disaster Management (HEDM) index by combining the key attributes and sub-attributes using the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) as a multi-attribute decision-making technique. The paper concludes that the anticipated benefits of analyzing the resilience of hospitals by using HEDM is the identification of the most susceptible hospitals based on their levels of readiness and resiliency in areas which are prone to experiencing disasters. This prioritization is important for resource allocation and budget planning.

Development of a Haddon Matrix Framework for Higher Education Pandemic Preparedness: Scoping Review and Experiences of Malaysian Universities During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Managing education and research during pandemics has increased in importance since the onset of epidemics such as avian flu, SARS and now CoViD-19. Successful management in times of crisis ensures business continuity and institutional survival, making preparedness preceding an impending pandemic essential. Institutions of higher education (IHEs) must maintain balance between academic continuity and preventing morbidity during a pandemic crisis. To date, however, no general pandemic preparedness frameworks exist for IHEs. The aim of this paper is to report on the development of a Haddon matrix framework for IHE pandemic preparedness based on a scoping literature review of past IHE responses including pre-, during and post-pandemic phases. First, a review of previous global responses by IHEs during past pandemics was carried out. The review findings were then collated into a new IHE-centric Haddon matrix for pandemic preparedness. The content of the matrix is then illustrated through the documented responses of Malaysian universities during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. The resulting IHE Haddon matrix can be used by universities as a general guide to identify preparedness gaps and intervention opportunities for business continuity during pandemics.