Best Practices of Hospitals in Management of Epidemic Conditions: A Scoping Review

Many hospitals globally have valuable experiences in preparing for man-agement and responding to infectious epidemics. Identifying and analyzing these expe-riences can provide comprehensive and practical data for decision-making and effec-tive performance. This study aimed to conduct a scoping review and content analysis of the best practices of hospital (private or public) management in epidemic conditions.

This research is a scoping review and content analy-sis, conducted in 2021. Data was collected by searching different databases, includ-ing Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Sciences, ProQuest, websites, search engines, and pub-lic reports without time limits. Content analysis was performed for data analysis.

We retrieved 8842 records from databases and other sources. Finally, 24 studies from 12 countries were selected for analysis. Most studies belonged to the United States (9 cas-es), and most subjects were on Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) (19 studies). We clas-sified the results into two major categories of in-hospital executive readiness and logistic readiness. Executive readiness included 11 main categories (physical structure, resource man-agement, exposure reduction, patients and caregivers’ management, corpse management, dis-infection, staff support, patient admission, instructions and guidelines, tele- communication, and education) and 26 sub-categories. Logistic readiness consisted of three major categories (leadership/team making, communication, and using capabilities) and five sub-categories.

Healthcare managers can use the identified categories and dimen-sions of managerial readiness and responsiveness as an action plan during an in-fectious disease epidemic.