Introduction: Managing disasters and public health emergencies presents a complex challenge, especially in maintaining the crucial elements of surge capacity, i.e., the 4S: Staff, Stuff, Space, and System. This study focuses on using alternative care sites, focusing on hotels, during disasters and public health emergencies. Methods: This study used a survey approach in two phases. In the first phase, the willingness to participate as an alternative care site was investigated among hotels in Bangkok, Thailand. In the second phase, the requirements for being an alternative care site were discussed with selected managers through a semi-structured interview session, including the legal implications of such utilization. Results: The results indicated a general willingness among participating hotels to participate as an alternative care site. However, some hotels lacked the requirements for being an alternative care site. Conclusion: Based on the requirements in this paper, there is a high potential for using hotels as alternative care sites during disasters and public health emergencies. However, there is a need for further research concerning practical admission criteria and legal implications. This study recommends a Delphi study among medical and legal professionals to investigate the criteria for utilizing hotels in this capacity.
Phattharapornjaroen et al. (Sun,) studied this question.