Health Emergency Preparedness and Response
National Health Disaster Management Capability Audit 2008
The National Health Disaster Management Capability Audit 2008 is the third national audit designed to identify pressures in the health system during a major emergency and to act on these to improve responses into the future.
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April 2010
PDF printable version of National Health Disaster Management Capability Audit 2008 (PDF 218 KB)
The Australian Health Protection Committee (AHPC) has today released the latest national audit of health services capability during a national health emergency.
The National Health Disaster Management Capability Audit 2008 is the third national audit designed to identify pressures in the health system during a major emergency and to act on these to improve responses into the future.
The national response to the pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza showed that Australia's health system is capable of coping well in a national health emergency by activating highly developed plans to re-prioritise and adapt health and hospital services to accommodate increases in hospital patients, particularly in Intensive Care Units. The H1N1 experience also showed the value of having the flexibility to adapt plans to meet the individual needs of a particular health emergency.
The success of Australia's national response and coordination capacity in dealing with the aftermath of emergencies such as the two Bali bombings in 2002 and 2005, the SARS crisis in 2003, the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004/5, the Mumbai terrorist attack in 2008 and the Ashmore Reef explosion in 2009 are also prime examples of how the Australian health system coped admirably when faced with external health disasters.
Many of the pressures identified in the 2008 audit have already been addressed and the AHPC will continue to act on lessons learned from this report. For example:
- The content of the National Medical Stockpile has been strengthened.
- Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear response capability has been increased.
- The Commonwealth purchased and distributed 326 ventilators in direct response to the findings of the 2003 Audit.
- Mortuary facilities have increased.
- Strategic Heath Disaster Plans have been regularly reviewed and exercised.
- Surge capability has been increased through a better understanding of the management of surge. The use of simulation tools such as Emergotrain, has provided health authorities with a greater understanding of the management of health emergencies in their jurisdictions.
- Training in health disaster management has increased dramatically since the first Audit.
The AHPC comprises representatives of all state and territory health authorities together with Commonwealth Defence and emergency services agencies. It is chaired by the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing.
An HTML version of this document is currently being prepared. In the meantime, if you have any difficulty in accessing the PDF, please contact the ohp.webmaster@health.gov.au for an alternate version to be sent to you.
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