We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
嚴重急性呼吸道症候群(SARS)及新冠肺炎 (COVID-19)投入資源比較暨推估疫情下 可能投入之資源-以某醫學中心與區域醫院為例
- Authors
林育瑄; 戴天亮; 羅銀秀; 陳惠貞; 鍾靜江; 邱淑芳
- Abstract
Objectives: This study aims to compare the resources invested during the SARS and COVID-19 epidemics, analyze and compare resources invested by a medical center and a regional hospital during SARS, and estimate the possible investment of resources (including expenses and costs) by the hospitals in different stages of epidemic development. Methods: Compare the different epidemics and hospitals at different levels based on retrospective data, and estimate the investment of resources. Results: A medical center invested NT$ 70.34 million worth of resources during SARS, mainly for setting up negative-pressure isolation rooms and a fever clinic (accounting for about 50% of the total investment), whereas the investment during COVID-19 is mainly on anti-epidemic supplies and special allowances for healthcare workers. There is a high level of correlation between investment in anti-epidemic resources by a medical center/regional hospital and the scale of a hospital. Moreover, a medical center estimates that when COVID-19 develops to the most severe stage, the investment will be around NT$ 43.04 million (excluding cost allocation), that is about 61% of the expenditure during SARS, and around NT$ 53.34 million (including cost allocation), about 76% of the SARS expenditure, at Purple Level 2 status. At the time of SARS, with no similar experience before, hospitals were caught unprepared upon the sudden outbreak, with no negative-pressure isolation facilities. Immense investment had to be made in this resource to accommodate confirmed cases. Although the COVID-19 epidemic is severe, with the negative-pressure isolation facilities already established and the advance deployment already adopted by both the government and the medical center, the epidemic has been kept in control to date. Conclusions: Due to the unpredictability of the epidemic, the time when the epidemic will end is unpredictable, and this will constrain the hospitals’ ability to estimate the investment in anti-epidemic resources. The length of a certain stage of epidemic, the severity of the epidemic, the government’s anti-epidemic policy, and the result of the hospitals’ implementation of antiepidemic measures all affect the amount of investment in resources. When combating the epidemic, hospitals will have reduced income, and hospitals may face cash flow problem if no government funding is provided. To give back up for the hospitals’ anti-epidemic efforts, the government should provide timely financial support for the hospitals to help them overcome the challenge.
- Publication
Taiwan Journal of Publich Health / Taiwan Gong Gong Wei Sheng Za Zhi, 2020, Vol 39, Issue 4, p397
- ISSN
1023-2141
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.6288/TJPH.202008_39(4).109069