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Assessing Barriers to Hospital Resilience in War and Conflict Settings: A Fuzzy AHP Approach

Year 2025, Volume: 22 Issue: 6, 1238 - 1253, 17.12.2025
https://doi.org/10.26466/opusjsr.1816575

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the primary barriers that undermine the resilience of hospitals operating in war and conflict environments and to prioritize these barriers according to their importance. Hospital resilience has become an important research area in recent years due to the increasing attacks and system vulnerabilities in terms of ensuring the continuity of healthcare services under crisis conditions. In the study, the Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method, which is a multi-criteria decision-making method that can provide reliable prioritization under uncertainty conditions, was used to address the limited number of research gaps in the literature on the subject. The data obtained from eight experts selected through purposive sampling method were analyzed by following the Fuzzy AHP steps. The findings reveal nine key barriers. The highest priority barrier was identified as “Interruptions in the supply of medicines, medical supplies and oxygen” (0.2300), followed by “Healthcare worker loss and retention” (0.1348) and “Weak governance/coordination and financing fragility” (0.1287). The conclusions show that for the sustainability of health services in war and conflict environments, the supply chain must be secured, health workers must be protected and retained, and governance and financial sustainability must be strengthened. The study contributes to the literature by providing an evidence-based prioritization framework for policy makers and managers to increase hospital resilience under crisis conditions.

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Savaş ve Çatışma Ortamlarında Hastane Dayanıklılığına Yönelik Engellerin Önceliklendirilmesi: Bulanık AHP Yaklaşımı

Year 2025, Volume: 22 Issue: 6, 1238 - 1253, 17.12.2025
https://doi.org/10.26466/opusjsr.1816575

Abstract

Bu çalışma savaş ve çatışma ortamlarında faaliyet gösteren hastanelerin dayanıklılığını zayıflatan temel engelleri belirlemek ve bu engelleri önem derecelerine göre önceliklendirmek amacıyla gerçekleştirilmiştir. Hastane dayanıklılığı, kriz koşullarında sağlık hizmetlerinin sürekliliğini sağlaması bakımından son yıllarda artan saldırılar ve sistem kırılganlıkları nedeniyle önemli bir araştırma alanı haline gelmiştir. Çalışmada, konuya ilişkin literatürde bulunan sınırlı sayıdaki çalışma boşluğunu gidermek üzere, belirsizlik koşullarında güvenilir önceliklendirme yapabilen çok kriterli karar verme yöntemlerinden Bulanık Analitik Hiyerarşi Prosesi (AHP) yöntemi kullanılmıştır. Amaçlı örnekleme yöntemiyle seçilen sekiz uzmandan elde edilen veriler Bulanık AHP adımları izlenerek analiz edilmiştir. Bulgular dokuz temel engeli ortaya koymaktadır. En yüksek önceliğe sahip engel “İlaç, tıbbi sarf ve oksijen tedarikinde kesintiler” (0,2300) olarak belirlenmiş, bunu “Sağlık çalışanı kaybı ve elde tutamama” (0,1348) ve “Yönetişim/koordinasyon zayıflığı ve finansman kırılganlığı” (0,1287) izlemiştir. Sonuçlar, savaş ve çatışma ortamlarında sağlık hizmetlerinin sürdürülebilirliği için öncelikle tedarik zincirinin güvence altına alınması, sağlık çalışanlarının korunması ve elde tutulması ile yönetişim ve finansal sürdürülebilirliğin güçlendirilmesi gerektiğini göstermektedir. Çalışma, kriz koşullarında hastane dayanıklılığını artırmaya yönelik politika yapıcılar ve yöneticiler için kanıta dayalı bir önceliklendirme çerçevesi sunarak literatüre katkı sağlamaktadır.

References

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  • Acer, A., & İnci, H. (2020). Personel seçimi sürecinin ahp tabanlı moora yöntemi ile değerlendirilmesi: Liman saha operasyon elemanı seçimi üzerine bir uygulama. OPUS international journal of society researches, 16(29 Ekim Özel Sayısı), 3689-3713.
  • Alameddine, M., Fouad, F. M., Diaconu, K., Jamal, Z., Lough, G., Witter, S., & Ager, A. (2019). Resilience capacities of health systems: accommodating the needs of Palestinian refugees from Syria. Social science & Medicine, 220, 22-30.
  • Ali, E. A. S. (2020). Providing health care in armed conflict countries: the case of Yemen (Master's thesis, Hamad Bin Khalifa University (Qatar)).
  • Barasa, E., Mbau, R., & Gilson, L. (2018). What is resilience and how can it be nurtured? A systematic review of empirical literature on organizational resilience. International journal of health policy and management, 7(6), 491.
  • Blanchet, K., Diaconu, K., & Witter, S. (2020). Understanding the resilience of health systems. In Health policy and systems responses to forced migration (pp. 99-117). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
  • Buckley, J. J. (1985). Fuzzy hierarchical analysis. Fuzzy sets and systems, 17(3), 233-247.
  • Büyüközkan, G., & Çifçi, G. (2012). A novel hybrid MCDM approach based on fuzzy DEMATEL, fuzzy ANP and fuzzy TOPSIS to evaluate green suppliers. Expert systems with applications, 39(3), 3000-3011.
  • Campbell, S., Greenwood, M., Prior, S., Shearer, T., Walkem, K., Young, S., ... & Walker, K. (2020). Purposive sampling: complex or simple? Research case examples. Journal of research in Nursing, 25(8), 652-661.
  • Cavalieri, M., Fontana, S., Guccio, C., Lisi, D., Martorana, M. F., Pignataro, G., & Romeo, D. (2025). Measuring hospital care resilience: a systematic literature review. The European journal of health economics, 1-37.
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  • Chang, D. Y. (1996). Applications of the extent analysis method on fuzzy AHP. European journal of operational research, 95(3), 649-655.
  • Devkota, N., Gurung, L., Joshi, P., Maharjan, R., Gurung, B., & Karki, U. (2023). Impact of brief psychological intervention on reducing the psychological symptoms after COVID-19 infection among healthcare workers (HCWs) in Nepal. Journal of psychiatrists' association of Nepal, 12(2), 12-20.
  • Echeverri, L., Saade, E., & Ragazzoni, L. (2025). The Imperative for a Comprehensive Medical Planning in Detention Facilities in Conflict Settings. Prehospital and disaster medicine, 40(S1), s11-s11.
  • Fallah-Aliabadi, S., Ostadtaghizadeh, A., Fatemi, F., Ardalan, A., Rezaei, E., Raadabadi, M., & Heydari, A. (2022). Hospital disaster resilience: development of an assessment tool using expert panel and fuzzy analytical network process. International journal of disaster resilience in the built environment, 13(5), 554-567.
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  • Gedikli, E. (2025). Assessment of Environmental Sustainability Practices in Healthcare Facilities by Employing Fuzzy-AHP. Acıbadem Üniversitesi Sağlık Bilimleri Dergisi, 16(3), 475–480.
  • Ghahramani, S., Bagheri Lankarani, K., Zakeri, M., Ghahramani, S., & Shojaei, P. (2025). Lack of hospital resilience as the main challenge of hospital management during the COVID-19 pandemic: A grounded theory study. Health services management research, 38(3), 164-172.
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  • Haghighat, M., & Mousavi, S. M. (2024). Identifying and ranking of the main organizational resilience indicators in the hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic: A study using fuzzy Delphi technique (FDT) and fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP). Heliyon, 10(5).
  • Haliloğlu, M., & Odabaş, M. S. (2018). Çok ölçütlü karar vermede AHP yöntemi. Kilis 7 aralık üniversitesi fen ve mühendislik dergisi, 2(2), 13-18.
  • Haverkort, J. M., De Jong, M. B., Foco, M., Gui, D., Barhoum, M., Hyams, G., ... & Leenen, L. P. (2017). Dedicated mass-casualty incident hospitals: an overview. Injury, 48(2), 322-326.
  • Husted, M., & Dalton, R. (2021). ‘Don’t show that you’re scared’: resilience in providing healthcare in a UK low-to-medium secure hospital. Health psychology and behavioral medicine, 9(1), 84-103.
  • Ibrahim, S., Al-Dahir, S., Al Mulla, T., Lami, F., Hossain, S. M., Baqui, A., & Burnham, G. (2021). Resilience of health systems in conflict affected governorates of Iraq, 2014–2018. Conflict and health, 15(1), 76.
  • Ignatowicz, A., Tarrant, C., Mannion, R., El-Sawy, D., Conroy, S., & Lasserson, D. (2023). Organizational resilience in healthcare: a review and descriptive narrative synthesis of approaches to resilience measurement and assessment in empirical studies. BMC health services research, 23(1), 376.
  • Jafari, H., Heidari, M., Sadeghi, R., & Heidari-Jamebozorgi, M. (2023). Factors affecting the resilience of hospital medical staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Family medicine & primary care review, 25(1).
  • Jolgehnejad, A. K., Kahnali, R. A., & Heyrani, A. (2021). Factors influencing hospital resilience. Disaster medicine and public health preparedness, 15(5), 661-668.
  • Khalil, M., Ravaghi, H., Samhouri, D., Abo, J., Ali, A., Sakr, H., & Camacho, A. (2022). What is “hospital resilience”? A scoping review on conceptualization, operationalization, and evaluation. Frontiers in public health, 10, 1009400.
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There are 73 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language English
Subjects Strategy, Management and Organisational Behaviour (Other)
Journal Section Research Article
Authors

Ersin Kocaman 0000-0002-3825-1548

Submission Date November 3, 2025
Acceptance Date November 22, 2025
Publication Date December 17, 2025
Published in Issue Year 2025 Volume: 22 Issue: 6

Cite

APA Kocaman, E. (2025). Assessing Barriers to Hospital Resilience in War and Conflict Settings: A Fuzzy AHP Approach. OPUS Journal of Society Research, 22(6), 1238-1253. https://doi.org/10.26466/opusjsr.1816575