Operationalising compassion at scale: Paediatric reunification as a core business continuity function in healthcare education systems

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Family reunification following disasters involving children remains one of the most consistently underdeveloped capabilities in emergency management and business continuity practice.1,2,3 Despite decades of incident after-action reports identifying reunification failures as a major contributor to prolonged suffering, operational breakdown, and loss of public trust, many healthcare systems and educational institutions continue to treat reunification as an ad hoc humanitarian concern rather than a formal continuity function.4 This paper argues that paediatric reunification must be reframed as an enterprise-level business continuity risk requiring structured governance, cross-sector integration, and repeatable operational design.5,6,7 Drawing on documented disaster failures, regulatory and accreditation requirements, and an implemented school–hospital partnership model, the paper presents a governed framework for integrating family information centres (FICs), school nurse liaisons, and coalition-based preparedness into continuity planning.8,9 The model demonstrates how compassion can be operationalised at scale without sacrificing command discipline, information security, or regulatory compliance.10,11 Implications for healthcare executives, emergency managers, and continuity professionals are explored, with particular attention to sustainability, legal alignment, and transferability across jurisdictions.12,13 This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at https://hstalks.com/business/.