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Disaster Response to a Mass Casualty Incident in a Hospital Fire by Regional Disaster Medical Assistance Team: Characteristics of Hospital Fire

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 August 2020

Jae Ho Jang ,
Jin-Seong Cho ,
Youg Su Lim ,
Sung Youl Hyun ,
Jae-Hyug Woo ,
Woo Sung Choi ,
Jae Yeon Choi  and
Hyuk Jun Yang
Jae Ho Jang
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Jin-Seong Cho*
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Youg Su Lim
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Sung Youl Hyun
Affiliation:
Department of Traumatology, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Jae-Hyug Woo
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Woo Sung Choi
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Jae Yeon Choi
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Hyuk Jun Yang
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Jin-Seong Cho, Department of Emergency Medicine, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea (e-mail: jinseongcho@gmail.com).
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Abstract

Objective:

A disaster in the hospital is particularly serious and quite different from other ordinary disasters. This study aimed at analyzing the activity outcomes of a disaster medical assistance team (DMAT) for a fire disaster at the hospital.

Methods:

The data which was documented by a DMAT and emergent medical technicians of a fire department contained information about the patient’s characteristics, medical records, triage results, and the hospital which the patient was transferred from. Patients were categorized into four groups according to results of field triage using the simple triage and rapid treatment method.

Results:

DMAT arrived on the scene in 37 minutes. One hundred and thirty eight (138) patients were evacuated from the disaster scene. There were 25 patients (18.1%) in the Red group, 96 patients (69.6%) in the Yellow group, and 1 patient (0.7%) in the Green group. One patient died. There were 16 (11.6%) medical staff and hospital employees. The injury of the caregiver or the medical staff was more severe compared to the family protector.

Conclusions:

For an effective disaster-response system in hospital disasters, it is important to secure the safety of medical staff, to utilize available medical resources, to secure patients’ medical records, and to reorganize the DMAT dispatch system.

Keywords

disaster medicinefiremass casualty incidentsemergency medical dispatch
Type
Brief Report
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 16 , Issue 1 , February 2022 , pp. 8 - 11
Copyright
Copyright © 2020 Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc.

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References

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