Knowledge-Based Decision Support System for Emergency Management: The Pandemic Framework

Emergency management systems (EMS) assist emergency managers to resolve emergencies on hand, through analyzing the emergency characteristics and consolidating data from different departments that are involved in resolving the emergency. Many countries have adopted various forms of EMS that are specialized in resolving one type of emergency, and studies demonstrate their effectiveness in producing better decisions. However, the COVID-19 pandemic uncovered the lack of a comprehensive framework that could deal with different emergencies. It also revealed the inability of the current systems to communicate with each other to retrieve the needed data. The aim of this study is to show the current state of EMS in emergency departments by constructing a framework for a knowledge-based decision support system for emergency management focusing on resolving pandemics. Qualitative approach was adopted in this research, where the authors reviewed emergency management in general and pandemics in specific. Existing EMS systems were investigated, and knowledge-based decision support systems were explored. Approaches for integration, communication, and collaboration were also studied. As a result of this study, a comprehensive framework, i.e., a knowledge-based decision support system for emergency departments, focusing on resolving pandemics was introduced. The framework was validated by a domain expert who provided insights and suggestions for future research. While the primary research focus is to assist emergency managers in resolving the COVID-19 pandemic, the proposed framework is unique by adopting different approaches and techniques that enable the system to deal with various emergencies not limited to the current pandemic.