2 Incident Management and Mass-Casualty Response Free Online FlashCards

What defines a mass-casualty incident?

An MCI occurs when patient needs exceed immediately available resources. Its threshold depends on local capacity and response plans, not a fixed patient count.

What are the Incident Commander's core responsibilities?

The Incident Commander establishes objectives, organizes resources, and maintains overall responsibility for incident management.

What does Unified Command do when authorities share an incident?

Unified Command sets common objectives when agencies or jurisdictions share authority, while each agency retains its responsibilities.

How should personnel report during an incident?

Personnel report through their assigned supervisors. They should not self-deploy or bypass the chain of command.

What should an incident action plan communicate?

It communicates incident objectives, assignments, safety concerns, and resource needs. It should be updated as conditions change.

What should responders assess during initial scene size-up?

Assess hazards, incident scope, access and layout, resource needs, command, and communications. Do not enter unsafe or contaminated areas without appropriate training, authorization, and protective equipment.

What belongs in an early report to dispatch and command?

Report the location, hazards, estimated patient count, immediate needs, command designation, and access instructions.

Why stage incoming resources?

Staging keeps incoming resources from congesting the scene and lets command send them where they are needed.

What patient and transport details should be tracked?

Track each patient's triage priority, destination, and departing unit, while maintaining identification and destination records even when identity is unknown.

Why should patients not all be sent to the nearest hospital?

Distribute patients among appropriate receiving facilities in coordination with medical control and local plans; sending everyone to the nearest hospital could overwhelm it.

What is MCI triage, and why must it be repeated?

Triage rapidly prioritizes care when resources are limited; it is not a definitive diagnosis. Reassess patients because conditions and available resources can change.

What is the order of SALT's global patient sort?

In SALT's global sort, assess still patients or those with an obvious life threat first, purposeful movers next, and walking patients later in a safe area.