Event highlights
During emergencies, hospitals must be able to provide uninterrupted essential services and protect both patients and health care workers.
Earthquakes; disease outbreaks; chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents; and other public health emergencies can place significant pressure on health care facilities.
One initiative – two WHO tools
To help hospitals prepare for emergency situations, WHO and the Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan launched the Hospital Emergency Preparedness Initiative, which aims to:
- assess hospital safety using the WHO Hospital Safety Index (HSI) tool
- translate findings into operational planning using the Hospital Emergency Response Planning (H-ERP) tool.
How the process works
The process combined theory with practice, starting with an introductory webinar in August 2026. This was followed by in-person training on the HSI on 24–25 September 2026. Participants then visited the Emergency Care Hospital in Tashkent, where they received hands-on training on how to apply the assessment tool in practice.
The next step
Following the workshop, WHO will support the analysis of HSI data collected from participating hospitals, including:
- data submitted by the pilot hospitals
- findings from the in-person assessment conducted during the workshop.
Based on the analysis, WHO will produce a consolidated report summarizing the safety and preparedness status of participating hospitals, including key strengths, gaps and priority recommendations.
The report will be shared with the Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan and will serve as an evidence base to:
- inform national planning and prioritization
- support the future development of H-ERP
- guide potential scale-up of both HSI and H-ERP across the country.
The next phase will focus on cascade trainings. Participants will share their knowledge with colleagues and peers in different regions, helping hospitals across the country assess their own preparedness and start planning accordingly.
Participants
WHO thanks the Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan, participating hospitals, the Republican Research Center for Emergency Medicine, and the Republican Ambulance Center and its regional branches for their partnership.
Event notice
Health emergencies can place hospitals under severe pressure, requiring them to remain safe and functional and able to maintain essential services during crises. Uzbekistan is taking important steps to strengthen hospital resilience and preparedness for a range of hazards, with particular attention to earthquakes and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) incidents.
To support these efforts, WHO, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan, is launching a broader hospital preparedness initiative. The initiative will combine the WHO Hospital Safety Index (HSI), which assesses hospital safety and preparedness, with the future development of Hospital Emergency Response Plans (H-ERPs) that translate identified gaps into practical actions.
The initiative will be launched through an online webinar on 12 August 2026. The webinar will introduce the overall approach, outline national priorities and explain how hospital safety assessments will inform future emergency response planning.
This will be followed by an in-person HSI workshop from 23–25 August 2026 for representatives of selected pilot hospitals. Through technical sessions, group work and a field visit, participants will learn how to apply the HSI methodology; assess structural, non-structural and emergency-management capacities; and identify priority actions to strengthen hospital safety and preparedness.
During the workshop, participants will also complete the HSI tool for their own hospitals. By the end of the workshop, the assessments will provide an initial picture of the safety and preparedness of participating hospitals, including key strengths, gaps and areas requiring further action.
The findings will support a consolidated analysis of hospital preparedness and provide an evidence base for future H-ERP development and the potential expansion of the initiative across Uzbekistan.