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Background: Epidemics are threats to communities and their health. The preparedness of makeshift hospitals in epidemics in management, planning, implementation, and structure to provide appropriate and timely services is essential. Studies show that the incidence command system and the operational fact sheet based on task descriptions and instructions in makeshift hospitals are not considered. This study is designed to develop an appropriate organizational structure for makeshift hospitals. Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study in two stages, including review and expert panel studies, to develop a national fact sheet guide and the structure of makeshift hospitals. Results: Based on the nature of disasters, makeshift hospitals should have specific structures. In the structure designed for a makeshift hospital, according to the center’s services and time of activation, it is necessary to have a manager, management, and executive staff. A medical specialist, such as an infectious or pulmonary specialist, is essential, depending on the situation. Considering the limited resources in developing countries and the importance of managing resources (financial, human, and equipment) and improving the quality of health services, it will be helpful to formulate a management structure and implement operational worksheets in the least possible time. Conclusion: The use of command and management structure will improve decision-making in critical situations, especially in cases of epidemics, the need for quarantine, and the provision of services to injured patients.

Background: Given the changes caused by COVID-19, modern information technology has gained a higher position, fostering the realistic comprehension of technology, developing an interdisciplinary program, and endorsing scientific and technological activities within the educational environment. Considering the advancement of information technologies after COVID-19, this study was conducted to explore the role of new information technology in shaping education during the pandemic. Materials and Methods: In this systematic review, all relevant studies were searched in Medline/PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, Iran Medex, Magiran, and Scientific Information Database (SID) databases from 2019 to 2022. The analysis was conducted using a thematic analysis approach. Results: Of the 1966 search results, 15 articles were included in this systematic review. These comprised 9 journal articles, 5 conference studies, and 1 thesis study. Data were extracted under two main categories—education and knowledge management—and four subcategories: Learning, performance quality, infrastructure, and planning. Conclusion: Developing positive and creative skills in using new technologies is a complex process, which, through joint planning in multidisciplinary teams, can enhance technology-driven education. However, using new information technologies requires more support for educational leadership.

Background: Measuring end-tidal carbon dioxide (ETCO2) can be a non-invasive, fast, and reliable method to predict partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PaCO2) in patients with respiratory distress. This method, which can be a suitable substitute to measure PaCO2, is being used in many emergency rooms and operating rooms in developed countries, but its exact relationship with PaCO2 has not been confirmed yet. This study aims to investigate the relationship between PaCO2 and ETCO2 in patients with respiratory distress referred to the emergency. Materials and Methods: Arterial blood gases were measured in patients referred to the emergency room of Hazrat Rasool Akram (PBUH) Hospital with the main complaint of respiratory distress, and the ETCO2 of the patient was measured simultaneously with a capnograph. At the same time, the blood pressure and body temperature of the patients were also measured. The obtained information was collected in a sheet and statistically analyzed using SPSS software, version 15. Results: A total of 120 patients were included in the study whose mean age was 48.3. The Mean PaCO2 and ETCO2 were 47.45 and 26.9, respectively. The mean respiratory rate was 37.4 and diastolic (89.9) and systolic (124.9) blood pressure. A total of 48.33% of patients were women. Statistical analysis showed a significant relationship between PaCO2 and ETCO2 (P=0.0001; CC=0.436). Linear regression analysis showed that ETCO2 predicts PaCO2 with R=0.424. Conclusion: A good correlation was found between PaCO2 and ETCO2 and this correlation was higher in diseases such as sepsis and COPD. Variables such as age, sex, and blood pressure did not affect this correlation. Of course, more studies on healthy people are necessary to confirm these findings.

Background: Providing emergency shelter for disaster victims is a part of disaster risk mitigation strategies. International organizations have proposed a framework for appropriate planning and emergency shelter design. These agencies are encouraging local authorities to manage events to use existing structures such as schools, community centers, etc., as emergency shelters for the victims. According to the social religious and spiritual status of mosques in communities, these centers are one of the crucial elements to create a safe and trusted shelter during disasters. This study aims to identify the role of mosques as emergency shelters in disasters. Materials and Methods: This study was a systematic study that searched the words related to the research title (disaster management, emergency shelter, mosque) with AND, OR operators in PubMed, Web of Sciences, Science Direct, and Scopus databases, and the Google scholar search engine, as well as Persian language databases of SID, Magiran, Irandoc, and Iran Medex. A three-step screening process was used to select studies using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews And Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) checklist. Finally, the data were analyzed thematically. Results: Out of a total of 175 articles found, 6 articles were relevant to the purpose of the study and were analyzed. The results of the present study showed that mosques can be suitable shelters for risk management during accidents and disasters. Also, in this regard, a range of strategies for designing programs for public participation and mosques were identified. Conclusion: The services and the role of mosques in disaster occurrence as a shelter are very effective and these valuable services can be further extended using social capital, attracting the attention of religious institutions, and public participation.

Background: At the end of December 2019, a new infectious disease was reported in Wuhan, China. It was a new type of coronavirus named COVID-19. The spread of COVID-19 created an emergency in the global health system and the elderly was identified as a vulnerable group to the disease. Materials and Methods: This is a systematic review conducted to manage the vulnerability of the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Accordingly, all articles published in this field from the beginning of March 2019 to the end of June 2021 have been extracted from the following databases: Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Irandoc, Magiran, MedLib, and SID. Results: High incidences of COVID-19 are exacerbated in the elderly with cognitive disorders, immunodeficiency, malnutrition, use of various medicines and social problems, anxiety, distance from the family, lack of healthcare, history of falls, multi-drug use due to old age during the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the elderly with underlying diseases, such as kidney failure, diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, heart, and respiratory diseases. Conclusion: The prevalence of vulnerability in the elderly was high during the COVID-19 pandemic, which can be a significant risk factor for health. Suffering from several simultaneous diseases, the number of medicines used, the history of falls, underlying diseases, and living alone were some of the vital determinants of vulnerability and considering the adverse consequences of vulnerability, difficulty in designing and implementing appropriate interventions and self-care education for the elderly and their families to manage drug use, treating chronic diseases, and preventing falls, it seems necessary to observe health protocols and stay at home.

Background: Sharing experiences and learning from health measures taken during the outbreak of epidemics is a critical issue that affects the right and timely decisions in health crises. In the present study, an attempt has been made to review the health policies adopted against COVID-19 and extract critical points for resolving the epidemic crisis. Materials and Methods: This article was a comparative study. The study population comprised Canada, Japan, Germany, Korea, Turkey, and Iran. Ten effective indicators in the management of epidemics were extracted by reviewing the literature and interviewing disaster management experts, and the degree of conformity of the research community with them was examined. The study data were collected from articles published in scientific databases (Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus search engines) or information from COVID-19 disease management organizations from official sites. The obtained data were processed and analyzed by matrix content analysis. Results: The results showed the importance of 10 effective indicators in the management of epidemics during the outbreak of COVID-19 studied and noticed by the health system of most countries. And the government, local and private organizations have participated in the implementation of the studied indicators according to the conditions of each country’s health system. Therefore, the success rate of countries in managing COVID-19 disease varies according to the time, type, and manner of implementation and monitoring of measures. Conclusion: Speed of action in adopting health policies and integration in its implementation, construction of convalescence, adequate training and access to personal protective equipment, prevention of nosocomial contamination, and voluntary assistance are essential issues in the fight against epidemics. These measures should be considered and used as teachings in managing health crises, especially emerging diseases and pandemics.

Background: Rising trend of emergencies and disasters in the world has caused a lot of damage to the health care facility infrastructures. This has led the health needs of the affected population to be the first and most requirement in emergencies and disasters. In most countries for the timely and appropriate response to the health needs of the affected areas, structured and organized teams are formed. Given the frequent occurrence of events in Iran and the adverse effects of emergencies and disasters on the community health, this study aimed to investigate the obstacles and challenges associated with the organization and preparation of Iran’s Emergencies and Disasters Medical Response Teams (EDMRT). Materials and Methods: In this study, a qualitative approach with a content analysis method was used to explore and extract the obstacles and challenges of the medical response teams in the field of organization and preparation. Data collection was done through 18 in-depth, unstructured, and semi-structured interviews with 16 experts and experienced people who were purposefully selected. Besides the interview, field visits and related reports were used to confirm or reject the findings. Data analysis was done by the qualitative approach recommended by Graneheim. Results: The obstacles and challenges associated with the organization and preparation of teams were obtained under 1 theme, 2 categories, and 10 subcategories. The main theme was “team management”. The categories included unorganized groups and frangible readiness. Concepts of the team; unknown structure, lack of effective leadership/command, poor supervision of proctor organization, membership; complex process, heterogeneous composition are the sub-categories related to the first category. And concepts of local level; disable to establishment a team; disaster medicine, unfamiliar concept; lack of air care team; dependence versus self-sufficiency; non-systematically support; and inappropriate location of deployment are the sub-categories of the second category Conclusion: The results of the study show that the current structures for medical response in emergencies and disasters have numerous challenges in terms of organization and preparedness. This defect harms the performance and effectiveness of medical response teams and an obstacle to the overall policy of reducing damages in disasters. The present study illustrates the need to review and refine the organization and preparedness processes associated with the current structure of medical response teams in emergencies and disasters. Of course, it is recommended that a more comprehensive study be conducted to identify and address the other areas of influence in these teams, such as legal considerations, health and safety, and related security issues.

Background: Hospitals need volunteers to help the injured people during disasters. Thus, it is necessary to prepare some criteria for selecting volunteers. The purpose of this study was to determine and prioritize individual and social criteria for selection of local volunteers in hospitals before disasters, the volunteers who provide health services for victims in disasters. Materials and Methods: This was an analytical descriptive study in which a researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect the data in 2015. The statistical population consisted of emergency and health managers and experts in hospitals affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences. The sample were selected using Cochrane methodology and calculated as 180 subjects. The data were analyzed through calculating mean, standard deviation, 1-sample t-test, and Friedman test using SPSS. Results: Based on the results, most personal and social criteria were significant (P≤0.05) and important in volunteers’ selection. The results showed that the most important personal criteria were physical ability and fitness, practical expertise, and voluntary attendance experience with the mean ranks of 4.03, 3.94, and 3.77, respectively. Also among social criteria, prompt response with the mean rank of 7.26, responsibility with 6.25, and conscience with 6.06 have been determined as important factors in the selection of volunteers for health services of hospitals in disasters. Conclusion: Hospitals could select volunteers based on the determined criteria. Personal criteria of physical fitness and practical expertise along with social criteria of prompt response and responsibility were reliable norms that based on them, the best volunteers could be chosen to perform health duties and decrease injuries in relief and health services.

Abstract: Background: Disaster management is relied on prediction of problems and providing necessary preparations in right time and place. In this study researchers intended to explore passed experiences of health disaster management. Method: This study conducted using qualitative content analysis methods. Participants were selected purposefully and data were collected through interviews, observation, and other documents. Results: Transcribed data from 18interviews, field notes and other documents were analyzed. In data analysis reactive management was emerged as main theme. It was included some categories such as ‘exposure shock’, ‘non deliberative relief’, ‘lack of comprehensive health disaster plan’, ‘lack of preparedness’, and ‘poor coordination in health service delivery’ and contextual factors. Discussion: The results clarified deep perception of participants’ experiences about health management in disasters. The professionals' and non-professionals' emotion-based reactions and behaviors, if accompanied with deficiencies in planning and preparedness, can lead to ineffective services, and aggravates the damages.