Assessment of Emergency Preparedness and Response of Healthcare Workers in a Teaching Hospital in Uyo, Nigeria

The aim of the study is to assess the emergency preparedness and response of healthcare workers at the Teaching Hospital in Uyo, Southern Nigeria. Emergency preparedness was depicted by emergency training, planning, logistics, triage system, and surge capacity. These are the independent variables. Emergency response was assessed through promptness and responsiveness. These represent dependent variables. The study employed a cross-sectional and inferential research design. Purposive sampling was used to select the teaching hospital in the State, the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, Akwa-Ibom. Data collection involved questionnaires and a checklist. Data analyses included descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation, Multiple linear regression, and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Descriptive results showed a moderate level of emergency preparedness across the sampled hospital, using five controlled variables, with weighted mean scores of 3.86, 3.96, 3.13, 3.13, and 3.43, respectively. Conversely, emergency response was moderate among healthcare workers in terms of promptness and responsiveness, with weighted mean scores of 3.74 and 3.76, respectively. Multiple linear Regression modeling yielded Goodness of fit R² Values, for promptness was 0.977 and 0.975 for responsiveness. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) between planning and promptness, as well as triage and promptness, yielded positive significance (p < 0.0001 and p = 0.000, respectively). However, ANOVA for each of these controlled variables, training (p = 0.394), logistics (p = 0.198), and surge capacity (p = 0.664) with respect to promptness, yielded no significant results. Also, ANOVA between planning and responsiveness, as well as logistics and responsiveness, yielded positive and significant results: planning (p < 0.0001), logistics (p = 0.000). However, ANOVA for each of these controlled variables, training (p = 0.692), triage system (p = 0.065), and surge capacity (p = 0.532) with respect to responsiveness yielded no significant results. For the demographic analyses, the PCA showed that healthcare workers with 11 - 15 years’ work experience showed a strong association with all the controlled constructs except for planning, which had a good association with healthcare workers who had more than fifteen years’ work experience. Gender had minimal influence on perception. In conclusion, the hospital demonstrated a good level of emergency preparedness and response, although training and surge capacity did not yield any significant results on promptness and