Abstract
Introduction: Biological Events affect large populations depending on transmission potential and propagation. A recent example of a biological event spreading globally is the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had severe effects on the economy, society, and even politics ,in addition to its broad occurrence and fatalities.
The aim of this systematic scoping review was to look into patient flow management techniques and approaches used globally in biological incidents.
Methods: The current investigation was conducted based on the guidelines of PRISMA for Scoping Review ,which is also used for systematic review and meta-analysis studies. All articles released until March 31, 2023, were examined for this study, regardless of the year of publication. The authores were searched in databases including Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed and Google scholar search engine. Papers with subjects and keywords about patient flow management and patient management policies during epidemics were included in the inclusion criteria, while all non-English language publications including those with only English abstracts were excluded.
Results: A total of 19231 articles were included in this study and after screening, 36 articles were eventually entered into the final analysis. 84 primary categories and subcategories were identified from the review of pertinent studies. To facilitate more precise analysis and understanding, factors were categorised into seven categories: patient flow simulation models, risk communication management, integrated ICT system establishment, collaborative interdisciplinary and intersectoral approach, systematic patient management, promotion of health information technology models, modification of triage strategies, and optimal resource and capacity management.
Conclusion: Patient flow management during biological Events plays a crucial role in maintaining the performance of the healthcare system. When public health-threatening biological incidents occur, due to the high number of patients, it is essential to implement a holistic ,and integrated approach from rapid identification to treatment and discharge of patients.