CDC - Field Triage - Injury Response - Injury Center

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CDC - Field Triage - Injury Response - Injury Center

CDC Releases 2011 Guidelines for Field Triage of Injured Patients Getting the right patient to the right place at the right time 

 Today, CDC published the 2011 Guidelines for Field Triage of Injured Patients (2011 Guidelines) in the
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports (MMWR). The new guidelines replace 2006 Guidelines that were published in 2009.

The 2011 Guidelines provide changes to the decision scheme for EMS providers who care for and transport patients injured from motor vehicle crashes, falls, and other causes each day in our nation’s communities.
To date, the 2011 Guidelines have been endorsed by 37 EMS professional and trade organizations, the Federal Interagency Committee on Emergency Medical Services, and have concurrence from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Find the plan to save lives and money at www.cdc.gov/FieldTriage.

Learn more

• 2011 Guidelines for Field Triage of Injured Patients (2011 Guidelines)(MMWR)
• Large Cost Savings Realized From The 2006 Field Triage Guideline: Reduction in Overtriage in U.S. Trauma Centers, Prehospital Emergency Care, Informa Healthcare
• Accurate Field Triage of Injured Patients Saves Lives and Money (PDF 640K)
• Large Cost Savings Realized From The 2006 Field Triage Guideline: Reduction in Overtriage in U.S. Trauma Centers || http://www.cdc.gov/Fieldtriage/

Field Triage

Guidelines for the Field Triage of the Injured Patients

Injuries affect all Americans.
They are the leading cause of death for children and adults from age 1 to 44 in the United States.
At the scene of an injury, Emergency Medical Service (EMS) professionals must identify the severity and type of injury, and determine which hospital or other facility would be the most appropriate to meet the needs of the patient. This is done through a process called “field triage.”

Decide to Save Lives and Money—Get the Facts

Large Cost Savings Realized From The 2006 Field Triage Guideline: Reduction in Overtriage in U.S. Trauma Centers
Accurate Field Triage of Injured Patients Saves Lives and Money 
Getting the right patient to the right place at the right time

The profound importance of daily on-scene triage decisions made by EMS professionals is reinforced by CDC-supported research that shows that the overall risk of death was 25 percent lower when care was provided at a Level I trauma center than when it was provided at a non-trauma center.
Not all injured patients can or should be transported to a Level I trauma center. Other hospitals can effectively meet the needs of patients with less severe injuries, and may be closer to the scene. Transporting all injured patients to Level I centers—regardless of injury severity—limits the availability of Level I trauma center for those patients who really need the level of care provided at those facilities. Proper field triage ensures that patients are transported to the most appropriate healthcare facility that best matches their level of need.
In 2009, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published guidance on the field triage process in “Guidelines for Field Triage of Injured Patients, Recommendations of the National Expert Panel on Field Triage” in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).
The updated Guidelines, published in the newly released MMWR reflect the results of the Panel’s deliberations and include changes made upon the best available evidence, and incorporate the experiential base that CDC has developed through its close work with states, national organizations, communities, and individual professionals.
The 2011 Guidelines for the Field Triage of the Injured Patient initiative is developed to give EMS leaders and professionals the tools they need to implement and adopt the 2011 Guidelines.
Download the “Guidelines for Field Triage of Injured Patients, Recommendations of the National Expert Panel on Field Triage, 2011 ” in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).

Continuing Education (CMEs, CNEs, CEUs)

• Continuing Education Activity credit is available through CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports (MMWR) Continuing Education Program. To access the report and take the course, visit: www.cdc.gov/mmwr/cme/serial_conted.html.

Downloadable Materials and Tools

MMWR Recommendations and Reports  Guidelines for Field Triage of Injured Patients: Recommendations of the National Expert Panel on Field Triage
Poster  [PDF 5MB]



Pocket Card  [PDF 81MB]

Badge  [PDF 805KB]






Black and White Poster  [PDF 472KB]

Related Links

• MMWR Recommendations and Reports  [PDF 1MB] 2006 Guidelines for Field Triage of Injured Patients: Recommendations of the National Expert Panel on Field Triage, January 29, 2009
• EMS.gov Hosted by NHTSA EMS and developed to meet the varied needs of the EMS community with updates on Federal EMS initiatives and programs.

Field Triage Advances Motor Vehicle Crash Response

For more information about CDC’s efforts to develop evidence-based protocols for the emergency medical community to effectively use automotive telemetry data, visit http://www.cdc.gov/injuryresponse/aacn.html.

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http://www.cdc.gov/Fieldtriage/