Mass Casualty Incidents Flashcards
Define a major incident in the prehospital setting
the incident requirements of the scene are greater than the capacity or the available resources
- an incident is spread over a large distance, it is difficult to assess, has multiple patients, and is not eat to immediately assess or control
- Each individal incident needs to be assessed on its own merits and the roles of triage office (TO) and transport officer (TO) initiated as soon as possible
Describe the role of triage officer
Triage officer (senior paramedic), transport officer (junior paramedic)
- locate the blue emergency folder, portable radio and smart triage pac
Triage officer
- assume scene leadership
- direct the activities of the transport officer
- reconnaissance of the scene
- ensure patients are triage adn tagged usng the smart triage pac cards and allocate clinical priority
- establish scene layout - location of casualty collecting point, loading point, holding point and any other requirements
- ensure that timely and accurate sitreps are provided
- liase with other services at scene
- report to oncoming incident health commander (IHC) when established
- liase with duty manager and transport officer
What does ETHANE stand for?
- Exact location
- Type of incident
- Hazards at scene
- Access and Egress
- Number of casualties
- Emergency services on scene and additional services required
What do you do if you identify an ASHE incident?
- escape
- hide
- tell
- dont be a hero
Where can there paramedic operate in an ASHE incident?
Only in the cold (safe) zone
What is the algorithm for a response to an ASHE?
THREAT
- Threat supression
- Haemorrhage control
- Rapid Extrication to safety
- Assessment by medical providers
- Transport to definitive care
What is the role of the transport officer?
- supporting the triage officer in the management of the scene and works at their discretions
- their tasks may include
- undertaking BLS measures (airway + circualtion control)
- supervising the casulaty clearing point
- commence and maintain the casualty movement log record transport of all patients:
- allocate numbers to trauma triage cards
- record patients name + brief description of injuries where possible
- destination hospital decision and documentation
- coordinate transport vehicles to ensure the appropriate transfer of patients
- ensure appropriate access and egress for responding vehicles
What are the three assessments triage is based off?
- walking at scene
- respiratory status
- heart rate
What does the smart triage pac consist of?
- 20 adult smart cards
- 10 black deceased cards
- 5 red glow sticks
- 2 pencils
- paediatric chart
- 20 CBR tags
- a casualty count care
- adult triage sieve
What is the adult triage sieve?
What is the triage sort?
- Triage sort is based on the Triage Revised Trauma Score (TRTS). Individual score is assigned for Resp Rate, BP and GCS. Add up these and assign a triage priority.
- This is used as a secondary assessment of priority.
What do you use to triage patients less than 10?
- Paediatric triage tape
What do you use to triage patients >10?
- sieve and sort cards
- it will over triage paediatric patients due to their higher physiological values
Where should a casualty clearing point be located?
- a safe distance from the scene (uphill and upwind)
- a location with sufficient space for the number of patients within each priority group
- somewhere that will provide shelter
- near the ambulance holding post
what should the ambulance holding point include:
- easily accessible including ease of egress
- large enough to accomodate all responding vehicles
- close enough to the loading point to allow for appropriate communication to occur
