Safe Hospital Tools Diversity in ASEAN: A Scoping Review

Introduction: The Safe Hospital concept, integrated into the 2015 Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, enhances healthcare resilience globally. The increasing frequency and intensity of hazards due to natural or non-natural incidents highlight the need for safe hospital tools to ensure preparedness, resilience, and response in times of crisis. This study aims to explore the tools used to evaluate the level of hospital preparedness in ASEAN regions. Methods: The scoping review protocol was based on the criteria of the Joanna Briggs Institute. Eligibility criteria were as follows: (1) empirical study published in a peer-reviewed journal; (2) used tools to assess, study, or measure the level of hospital preparedness in ASEAN; (3) data collected in the hospital setting in ASEAN member states; and (4) studies published in English. The electronic literature searches of English articles enlisting ASEAN countries published between 2018 and 2024 were conducted using PubMed, Elsevier, ProQuest, ISI Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases. The keywords of sub-title searching were “hospital”, “disaster”, “emergency”, “hospital preparedness”, “hospital readiness”, “hospital assessment”, “hospital evaluation”, “tools”, “checklist”, “health facility”, and “medical facility” in combination with the Boolean operators “OR” and “AND.” Results: 16 articles from 17,800 publications were included in the final analysis. Findings showed some safe hospital evaluation tools with a diverse range of approaches. Some countries adopt the WHO Hospital Safety Index, have customized tools to address unique regional vulnerabilities, while others do not appear in the search engine. The result indicated the challenge of applying evaluation standards among countries and the incorporation into national health policies. Conclusion: This review offers insights into the diverse safe hospital tools in ASEAN, providing a basis for the harmonization of disaster health management in hospital practices.