Introduction
The World Health Organization (WHO) has promoted and supported the Safe Hospitals Initiative for over 25 years as a primary disaster risk reduction strategy. Your involvement is crucial in this initiative, which aligns with the seven goals and four priorities of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) introduced the first version of the Hospital Safety Index (HSI) in 2008. Since then, the tool has been revised and updated, with significant revisions made in 2015. It is now applied in more than 83 countries worldwide. The second version of the HSI, published in 2018, plays a central role in local, national, and global initiatives to enhance the resilience of the health sector to health emergencies and disasters. This version integrates crosscutting themes such as gender, ethnicity, and the inclusion of people with disabilities in addressing multiple hazards. Identifying vulnerabilities through the HSI-2 can significantly increase a health facility's preparedness for response, ensuring continuity of operations during health emergencies or disasters and facilitating a more efficient early recovery. The virtual course "Evaluation of Health Facilities using the Hospital Safety Index Second Version (HSIv2)" is a self-paced training program designed to provide potential HSI evaluators with a comprehensive 40-hour base theoretical knowledge. This course equips participants with all the necessary elements to develop their competencies and skills. Another essential objective is to achieve greater dissemination of the importance of the Safe Hospitals initiative, based on its foundation, the Hospital Safety Index, Second Version.

Registration Link: https://campus.paho.org/en/course/health-facilities-assessment-using-hospital-safety-index

Virtual Course Description
This self-paced virtual course comprises an introductory module, followed by five comprehensivemodules:1.

Hazards that affect the safety of the hospital and the role of the hospital in the management
of health emergencies and disasters
2. Structural safety
3. Non-structural safety
4. Emergency and disaster management
5. Procedure for the evaluation and presentation of results.
The course is available at the PAHO Virtual Campus of Public Health and focuses on the technical knowledge essential for using HSI v2 during hospital evaluations. Each thematic module includes feedback activities to reinforce complex aspects identified through the evaluators' experiences. This self-paced course requires a 40-hour learning investment. There is no time limit for completion, and participants will receive a certificate upon finishing the course. However, it is
important to note that the certificate does not authorize the participant to be an evaluator; national authorities are responsible for setting the criteria to accredit evaluators.

Methodology:
• Type: Webinar
• Registration: Zoom Link (Capacity: 500 participants) : Meeting Registration - Zoom
• Duration: 90 minutes
• Language: English
Audience:
• Hospital Safety Index Evaluators
• Professionals with experience in Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management,
including engineers, architects, electrical and mechanical equipment specialists, and
healthcare personnel (doctors, nurses, and administrators).
• Specialists in planning or administration and logistics, and safety advisors, safety
inspectors, among others.
• Safety and hygiene inspectors.
• Disaster Risk Management professionals.