Investigating the Readiness of Emergency Department of Khatam Al-Anbia Hospital in Zahedan, Iran, for Facing COVID-19 in 2020: a Descriptive-Analytical Study

Hospitals play an important role in crisis management in the society. Since the outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the world, hospital's readiness to continue providing medical care during the COVID-19 crisis has received much attention. The aim of the current study was to assess the readiness of the Emergency Department (ED) of Khatam Al-Anbia Hospital in Zahedan, Iran for facing COVID-19 crisis in 2020.

The present study was performed on all emergency personnel of Khatam Al-Anbia Hospital in Zahedan, 100 in number. The sampling method was random and to collect information, two questionnaires of psychological readiness to deal with COVID-19, and the questionnaire of epidemiological and clinical variables (COVID-19 coping rate) were used. Data were collected and analyzed using SPSS software version 26. Pearson test was used to find correlations between study variables. P-values <0.05 were considered significant.

There was a significant positive correlation between all three psychological components of the Cognitive Readiness Questionnaire against Corona (behavioral, cognitive, and emotional dimensions) as well as its total score with the total score of the Epidemiological and Clinical Variables Questionnaire (COVID-19 coping rate).

Based on the results of the present study, psychological components have a significant correlation with the rate of coping with COVID-19 among hospital emergency personnel. It was also found that psychological readiness of the emergency treatment staff of Khatam Al-Anbia Hospital in Zahedan, in the face of COVID-19, was at an acceptable level. Considering the newness of COVID-19, the importance of recognizing the effective factors in combating this disease among the medical staff, and scarcity of studies in this regard, it is recommended to conduct further studies in other medical centers in the country.