BACKGROUND: Multiple casualty incidents (MCI) highlight discrepancies between patient needs and available resources. It is generally thought that heavy patient loads adversely affect trauma health care delivery. The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of multiple casualty situations on the clinical outcomes of injured patients. METHODS: All severely injured trauma patients (Injury Severity Score [ISS] > or = 12) who presented during a 12-month period to a regional trauma center were retrospectively reviewed. MCIs were defined as treating and admitting three or more trauma patients within a maximum of 3 hours. This cohort was compared with all other patients who did not meet MCI criteria. RESULTS: Ten percent (88/861) of all trauma patients were treated in an MCI setting. Groups did not vary among sex, age, ISS, or mechanism of injury (p > 0.05). MCI patients displayed a greater length of hospital stay, time to first surgical procedure, time to emergency laparotomy, and time spent in the emergency room (p < 0.05). MCI and non-MCI patients did not differ in ICU length of stay, postadmission morbidity, or mortality (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The impact of a MCI on the quality of trauma care has not been previously defined. MCI events delay definitive care and prolong a patient's length of stay. This is particularly concerning in the emergency department where a trauma center's ability to treat MCI patients effectively via an increased surge capacity relies on swift patient triage and flow. We are now investigating these issues in other trauma centers.
BACKGROUND: Multiple casualty incidents (MCI) highlight discrepancies between patient needs and available resources. It is generally thought that heavy patient loads adversely affect trauma health care delivery. The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of multiple casualty situations on the clinical outcomes of injured patients. METHODS: All severely injured traumapatients (Injury Severity Score [ISS] > or = 12) who presented during a 12-month period to a regional trauma center were retrospectively reviewed. MCIs were defined as treating and admitting three or more traumapatients within a maximum of 3 hours. This cohort was compared with all other patients who did not meet MCI criteria. RESULTS: Ten percent (88/861) of all traumapatients were treated in an MCI setting. Groups did not vary among sex, age, ISS, or mechanism of injury (p > 0.05). MCI patients displayed a greater length of hospital stay, time to first surgical procedure, time to emergency laparotomy, and time spent in the emergency room (p < 0.05). MCI and non-MCI patients did not differ in ICU length of stay, postadmission morbidity, or mortality (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The impact of a MCI on the quality of trauma care has not been previously defined. MCI events delay definitive care and prolong a patient's length of stay. This is particularly concerning in the emergency department where a trauma center's ability to treat MCI patients effectively via an increased surge capacity relies on swift patient triage and flow. We are now investigating these issues in other trauma centers.
Authors: Carl O Eriksson; Ryan C Stoner; Karen B Eden; Craig D Newgard; Jeanne-Marie Guise Journal: J Gen Intern Med Date: 2016-12-15 Impact factor: 5.128
Authors: Michel Paul Johan Teuben; Carsten Mand; Laura Moosdorf; Kai Sprengel; Alba Shehu; Roman Pfeifer; Steffen Ruchholtz; Rolf Lefering; Hans-Christoph Pape; Kai Oliver Jensen Journal: World J Surg Date: 2021-03-29 Impact factor: 3.352
Authors: Michel Debacker; Ives Hubloue; Erwin Dhondt; Gerald Rockenschaub; Anders Rüter; Tudor Codreanu; Kristi L Koenig; Carl Schultz; Kobi Peleg; Pinchas Halpern; Samuel Stratton; Francesco Della Corte; Herman Delooz; Pier Luigi Ingrassia; Davide Colombo; Maaret Castrèn Journal: PLoS Curr Date: 2012-03-23