Hospital Emergency Preparedness Assessment

Know how your hospital will perform before the incident does.

The Operational Readiness Index™ (ORI™) is D2EMC’s consultant-led assessment for hospitals and health systems. It compares documented preparedness with observable capability to give leaders a defensible baseline, priority gaps, and a focused path forward.

  • Independent assessment
  • Evidence-based review
  • Leadership-ready findings
Operational Readiness Index™

Readiness Profile

Illustrative
Illustrative tier Operational

Core capability is established, with targeted gaps requiring improvement and validation.

Plans & Policies78
CBRN Capability66
Training73
Exercises70
Leadership & HICS74
Strongest domain Plans & Policies
Priority gap CBRN Capability

32+ Years Military leadership
9 Years Leading Massachusetts HazMat
40+ Hospitals Readiness assessments
BIDMC Disaster Medicine Faculty

The readiness gap

A completed plan does not prove operational readiness.

ORI™ distinguishes what a hospital has documented from what its people, leadership, and systems can demonstrate under pressure.

Select a card to compare

Use the buttons—or the left and right arrow keys—to turn the card.

ORI reveals the space between the two—and where leadership should act first.

01 · Preparedness

Documented Intent

Plans, policies, assigned resources, and training describe what the organization intends to do before an incident.

  • Emergency plans and annexes
  • Policies and procedures
  • Equipment and supply inventories
  • Training and exercise records
The question it answers “What do we intend to do?”
02 · Readiness

Demonstrated Capability

People, leadership, and systems can recognize the threat, make decisions, and execute safely when conditions change.

  • Threat recognition and escalation
  • Authority and decision-making
  • Safe operational execution
  • Coordination under pressure
The question ORI™ answers “What can we demonstrate now?”

The ORI framework

Five domains. One operational view.

ORI examines the connected conditions that shape hospital performance during the first operational period.

Select a domain to explore
DOMAIN 01

Planning & Documentation

The plans, roles, and supporting materials that establish the hospital’s operational foundation.

Leadership question: Do the documented plans create a usable foundation for the first operational period?
DOMAIN 02

CBRN/HazMat Readiness

The hospital’s ability to protect personnel, receive contaminated patients, and sustain essential operations.

Leadership question: Can teams recognize, isolate, protect, and coordinate when contamination is possible?
DOMAIN 03

Training & Exercise History

How recent learning and validation activities support real-world performance.

Leadership question: Has capability been practiced, evaluated, and improved—not simply documented?
DOMAIN 04

Leadership & Command Readiness

How authority, command roles, and decision pathways support action under pressure.

Leadership question: Can leaders establish priorities and coordinated action when conditions are uncertain?
DOMAIN 05

Interoperability & Coalition Alignment

How the hospital coordinates with responders, healthcare partners, and regional systems.

Leadership question: Can the hospital operate effectively with EMS, fire, public health, coalitions, and regional partners?

This is the public, high-level domain view. ORI questions, evidence protocols, scoring rules, weights, and calibration methods remain confidential.

The assessment process

From uncertainty to a prioritized readiness plan.

ORI is a consultant-led hospital readiness assessment scoped around the decisions your leaders need to make—not a generic checklist.

01

Scope the Decision

We define the facility context, priority hazards, stakeholders, and leadership questions the assessment must address.

02

Assess the Evidence

A D2EMC consultant conducts a structured review of authorized information and relevant operational conditions.

03

Brief and Prioritize

Leadership receives an interpreted baseline, key strengths, priority gaps, and a practical improvement path.

Step 1 of 3
BaselineImproveReassessRevalidate

ORI supports a continuous readiness cycle—not a one-time score.

Decision-ready outputs

Clear findings leaders can act on.

ORI translates complex preparedness information into a concise, leadership-ready picture of operational readiness.

01

Interpreted Readiness Baseline

A clear view of the organization’s current posture across the five ORI domains.

02

Evidence-Supported Findings

Key strengths and priority gaps explained in operational terms.

03

Prioritized Improvement Roadmap

A focused set of next actions designed to strengthen readiness.

04

Executive Briefing

A guided discussion of findings, implications, and recommended next steps.

ORI™ Leadership ViewIllustrative
Current postureInterpreted baseline
Priority domainsClear focus areas
Recommended actionsPractical next steps

Sample information shown for demonstration only. It does not represent an actual client assessment.

Is ORI right for your organization?

Use ORI when leadership needs a credible readiness baseline.

ORI is designed for hospitals and health systems preparing for a major decision, exercise, investment, survey, or incident.

01

No current baseline

Plans exist, but leaders cannot clearly describe current operational capability.

02

Recurring gaps

Exercise or assessment findings continue to return without a focused improvement path.

03

Leadership or system change

Turnover, growth, or multi-site variation has created uncertainty about roles and authority.

04

A consequential decision is approaching

Leadership needs stronger evidence before an exercise, investment, survey, or operational change.

Scoped to your operating reality.

Rural and critical-access hospitals may face limited staffing, transfer access, supplies, redundancy, and regional dependencies. ORI treats those as operating conditions—not a lack of commitment—and scopes the assessment accordingly.

Self-assessment

What the organization believes it has

A useful internal reflection, but one that can be limited by familiarity, assumptions, and inconsistent interpretation.

ORI™ independent review

What evidence and capability support

A consultant-led interpretation of strengths, priority gaps, and practical actions within the hospital’s operational context.

ORI FAQ

Straight answers before you begin.

The engagement begins with a focused scoping conversation—not a checkout or self-service test.

What is the Operational Readiness Index™?

ORI™ is D2EMC’s consultant-administered hospital operational readiness assessment. It gives leaders an interpreted view of strengths, priority gaps, and next actions across five readiness domains.

Is ORI a self-assessment?

No. ORI is led and interpreted by D2EMC so findings can be understood within the organization’s operational context. Clients receive results and recommendations; the proprietary assessment instrument and scoring methodology remain confidential.

What does ORI evaluate?

ORI examines Planning & Documentation, CBRN/HazMat Readiness, Training & Exercise History, Leadership & Command Readiness, and Interoperability & Coalition Alignment.

What does leadership receive?

Leadership receives an interpreted readiness baseline, evidence-supported findings, prioritized next actions, and an executive briefing.

Is ORI an accreditation, certification, or regulatory inspection?

No. ORI is an independent advisory assessment. It does not confer accreditation or certification, replace a regulatory survey, or represent government approval.

Can ORI support rural hospitals, critical-access hospitals, and multi-site systems?

Yes. The assessment is scoped to each organization’s operating reality, including staffing, transfers, supplies, limited redundancy, regional dependencies, and multi-site coordination.

Your next step

Replace assumptions with evidence.

Start with a focused conversation about the readiness questions your leadership needs answered. D2EMC will determine whether ORI is the right fit and define an appropriate assessment scope.

Request an ORI™ Briefing

Consultant-led · Confidential · Scoped to your operational reality