Table 2.

The main factors affecting the readiness and responsiveness of countries during SARS, MERS, and COVID-19 epidemic/pandemic crises

Main Factors	Sub-Factors
Community-related interventions	Personal and environmental hygiene23
	Improving community behavioral communication24
	Community engagement24-26
	Public’s preventive and avoidance measures23, 27, 28
	Social distancing24, 29
	Reducing citizens’ anxiety23, 24
	Telecommunication and media30-32
Socioeconomic factors	Political and institutional28, 31
	Social determinants of health23, 27, 28, 33, 34
	Universal access to healthcare during an outbreak35
	Developing communication strategies36
Environmental factors	Legislation37, 38
	Urbanization and globalization11
	Increasing human-animal interactions39
	Homeless service providers15, 34
Readiness of hospitals and health centers	Increasing the capacity of intensive care units40
	Enhancing surveillance31
	Negative emotional work33
	Utilizing the private sector3
	Training and simulation3
	Laboratory preparedness38
	Applying specified protocols41
	Communicable disease control medical networks42
	Surge capacity38, 41, 30, 43
	Appropriate use of personal protective equipment36, 44, 45
	Expanding telehealth30
	Screening implementation30, 43
Managerial interventions	Financial resources23, 27, 46, 31, 47
	Human resource and workforce management23, 27, 46, 30, 47-49
	Information, education, and training23, 27, 46, 31, 26, 45, 50, 51
	Physical resources44
	Leadership and intergovernmental relationships36
	Collaboration between health and non-health sectors3, 52
	Supplies and staffing44, 38
	Disaster response plans3, 44, 53
	Crisis practice guidelines31, 36, 37

SARS: Severe acute respiratory syndrome, MERS: Middle East respiratory syndrome, COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019