Letter to the Editor

Background Disaster, whether man made or natural, may occur at any place or time. This study was conducted to assess the preparedness of hospitals in handling emergencies as per District Disaster Management Plan (DDMP) at Mangalore, a coastal city on the Western coast of Karnataka. Method A cross sectional study was conducted in 12 hospitals of Mangalore city, located at the Southwestern coast of India in April 2009, using a semi-structured proforma. All surveyed hospitals were included in the DDMP. The respondents were hospital administrators. Results Though all the hospitals surveyed were aware about the existence of DDMP in the district of Dakshina Kannada, 6 (50%) were unaware that their hospitals were included in the same plan. Out of 12 hospitals, 4 (33.3%) said that they had got a letter from DDMP, spelling out their responsibilities. Only 6 (50%) hospitals had a contingency plan for emergency. Mock drill was conducted only by 6 (50%) hospitals. Six (50%) hospitals had blood bank, 5 (41.6%) had trauma center and 8 (66.6%) had burns ward available for emergency. Half of them had more than 2 ambulances and 10(83.3%) had sufficient stock of medicines. Extra beds for emergency were available in 11(91.7%) hospitals with maximum number of 42 beds in one hospital. Conclusion; Most hospitals in Mangalore were not well prepared to manage emergencies in disasters. Facilities like burns ward, blood bank and ambulance services need to be enhanced