Triage in disaster

management
Dept of Community
Medicine
KIMS&RC
This session will focus on
• Definition- Disaster
Management
• Importance of “TRIAGE”
• Triage System

• The Four TRIAGE TAG Colors

 Definition- Disaster
Management
“ Any occurrence that causes

damage, ecological disruption, loss of human life

or detioration of health services
on a scale sufficient to warrant an extra ordinary
response from outside the affected community or
area” .
 Triage
At the site of disaster- In mass emergencies

“ First Come , First Treated” – NOT FOLLOWED

• Based on the severity of injuries / likelihood of

survival
• Rapidly classified

• Priority – victims who have good prognosis

with simple intensive care
• Lowest priority – Moribund patients
 What is Triage?
• French verb “Trier”

means to “Sort”
• Assigns priorities when resources
limited
• Do the best for the greatest number of
patients
Triage System
Four colour code system

Red - High priority

Yellow - Medium priority

Green - Ambulatory patients

Black - Dead / moribund patients

Triage determines transportation /

admission to hospital
 The Four TRIAGE TAG
Colors
Minor – bottom strip
-Injuries managed by first aid only
Green Strip -No hospital care needed at the moment
Delayed – second from the bottom
-Needs hospital care, but not immediate
Yellow Strip Immediate – third from the bottom
-Needs emergency care now
Red Strip -Should receive attention before all
others
Deceased – fourth from the bottom
Black Strip -Dead or non-salvageable, No CPR is
done
Triage Categories
RED - Immediate/emergent
YELLOW - Urgent

GREEN – Non urgent

BLACK-
. Dead/little to no
hope of
survival