Triage & Mass Casualty Management Flashcards
7 cards from real EFMB practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Triage & Mass Casualty Management flashcards as text
Which change in a patient's condition should prompt a triage officer to UPGRADE a casualty from Delayed (T2) to Immediate (T1)?
Answer: Declining mental status and dropping blood pressure
Declining mental status combined with falling blood pressure signals hemorrhagic shock progression, which is immediately life-threatening and requires urgent intervention.
In a chemical agent mass casualty event, what must occur BEFORE triage and treatment begin?
Answer: Decontaminate casualties to prevent cross-contamination of providers
Decontamination precedes triage in chemical incidents to protect medical personnel from secondary contamination and prevent spread of the agent.
What is 'reverse triage' and in what situation is it used?
Answer: Treating the least injured first to quickly return them to duty
Reverse triage prioritizes minimally injured patients to rapidly return them to combat duty, used in situations where maintaining unit fighting strength is operationally critical.
A patient in a mass casualty event is unconscious, apneic, and pulseless. What triage category should this patient receive in a true MASCAL?
Answer: Expectant (T4) — unless sufficient resources allow resuscitation
In a true MASCAL, patients in cardiac arrest are categorized Expectant because CPR consumes critical resources that could sustain multiple salvageable patients.
During TCCC, after sealing a penetrating chest wound a patient begins to deteriorate with worsening respiratory distress. What is the NEXT priority intervention?
Answer: Perform needle chest decompression at the 2nd ICS, MCL
Deterioration after wound sealing strongly suggests tension pneumothorax; needle decompression at the 2nd intercostal space, midclavicular line relieves the pressure.
When resources are extremely limited, what is the PRIMARY criterion for separating Immediate (T1) from Delayed (T2) casualties?
Answer: Likelihood of survival given available resources
With scarce resources, T1 priority goes to casualties most likely to survive with the treatment resources currently on hand, maximizing the number of lives saved.
In a mixed trauma and medical emergency MASCAL, which patient would most appropriately receive an 'Immediate' (T1) triage category?
Answer: A patient with a sucking chest wound and declining oxygen saturation
A sucking chest wound with declining SpO2 indicates an open pneumothorax compromising breathing and oxygenation — a life-threatening emergency requiring immediate intervention.