[3] Hospitals preparation to manage an increase in patient volumes has been highlighted in recent times due to different man-made or natural-caused disasters.
The Covid-19 pandemic is a recent well-known disaster situation and has made a big impact on the preparedness work.
[5] In February 2019, the American Hospital Association released a report that medical surge capacity was one of four major challenges threatening rural hospitals' ability to provide care, along with the "opioid epidemic," violence in the community, and cyber threats.
[6] Surge capacity is described as "the ability to expand care capabilities in response to sudden or more prolonged demand.
"[7] The requirements of surge may extend beyond direct patient care to include such tasks as extensive laboratory studies or epidemiological investigations.