Prehospital Response and Field Triage in Pediatric Mass Casualty Incidents: The Israeli Experience

Israel has been subject to hundreds of violent acts against the civilian population in the last several years, many of them mass casualty incidents involving children. The pediatric age group is characterized by unique anatomical, physiological, and developmental traits that make the treatment of traumatic injury particularly difficult. The aim of article is to review and analyze the cumulative experience gained in Israel with the management of children injured in mass casualty incidents, with a focus on the structure and modified triage algorithm of the national emergency medical system and the recommendations of the National Committee on the Management of Pediatric Mass Casualty Incidents.

Abbreviations: ED, emergency department, EMS, emergency medical services, EMT, emergency medical technician, ICA, intensive care ambulance, ITR, Israel Trauma Registry, MCI, mass casualty incident, MDA, Magen David Adom, MICU, mobile intensive care unit

Keywords: trauma, terror, injury, pediatric, children, disaster medicine, triage, emergency medicine, disaster-planning-organization-administration, emergency medical services