Lessons from Hospitals' Experiences in Responding to COVID-19

Hospitals have faced diverse and serious challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. This policy note attempts to provide a review of hospital experiences and response during this period, together with lessons to support hospitals in preparing and responding to future pandemics. The note highlights the importance of a holistic and comprehensive approach to health care delivery rather than a simple improvement of health care capacity in responding to pandemics and disease outbreaks. During an outbreak or pandemic there is likely to be a need for a country to rapidly expand the capacity for diagnostic testing by expediting its approval process for the availability and use of appropriate test kits. Also, introducing innovative testing venues such as drive-throughs and walk-throughs has significantly helped access and increased the number of tests that can be done on a daily basis. Countries can respond to an increased patient load by increasing hospitals' surge capacity for mass critical care by mobilizing trained medical teams to intensive care units, and they can improve intensive care capacity by using intermediate care wards, postsurgical recovery rooms, operating theaters, and areas of intervention. Countries can transform public venues such as exhibition centers and residential facilities (such as dormitories for athletes) into health care facilities, where patients with mild to moderate infection can be isolated from their homes while being provided with medical care, disease monitoring, food, shelter, and social activities. Countries need to relax regulatory guidelines, expand reimbursement of costs, and increase access to advancing technology such as telehealth and virtual care to address public health needs and improve care efficiency during the pandemic