Thursday 24 July 2014

Well Stocked Triage Kits Can Save Lives In An Emergency

By Eric Holm


Triage is defined as the act of prioritizing patient according to the severity of their injuries. The idea behind a triage system is that it allows the medical personnel to treat as many patients as possible in situations where treating them is difficult due to situation, terrain, or shortage of medical personnel. Triage kits and their use are an essential part of the success of any triage operation. You will want to obtain a basic triage kit to set up your operation.

A triage kit contains a number of items essential to any emergency rescue, trauma and/or medical situation. Safety vests and colored tape to designate the different levels of severity of injury are just scratching the surface of triage kits and the use. The levels of a triage unit are generally minor, delayed, immediate and morgue/deceased. Those defined as having minor injuries obviously don't need urgent help. Patients who are diagnosed as delayed can wait for transport to a hospital. Those diagnosed as immediate are taken to hospitals right away. For those morgue patients, body bags will be needed. Also included in a triage kit is a book on setting up your triage unit and how to perform common operations.

Manuals explaining how to do CPR and provide treatment for a range of minor injuries should also be included in this type of first aid kit. One or two portable stretchers will be necessary if there are people with serious injuries that need to be carried away from the disaster scene.

Natural disasters and terrible accidents are situations no one ever wants to go through. When tragedy strikes, there is always a better chance for a positive outcome with the proper rescue equipment ready to go. Solar blankets and other first aid supplies can make a big difference if there is ever a disaster in your community and you are pressed into service.

In most cases of natural disaster situations such as earthquakes, non medical personal will find themselves involved in a type of triage known as S.T.A.R.T. which stands for simple triage and rapid treatment. This is simply designed to identify the injuries quickly and get the most seriously injured to hospitals for full care as soon as possible. That's why it is important for professional first responders and all volunteers to know the ins and outs of triage kits and their uses.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment