Article

Civilian hospital response to a mass casualty event: the role of the intensive care unit.

Department of Surgery, Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel, and University of California, San Francisco General Hospital, USA.
The Journal of trauma (impact factor: 2.48). 06/2007; 62(5):1234-9. DOI:10.1097/01.ta.0000210483.04535.e0 pp.1234-9
Source: PubMed

ABSTRACT We studied the response of the Shaare Zedek Medical Center (SZMC) in Jerusalem, Israel, to terrorist multiple- or mass-casualty events (TMCEs) that occurred between 1983 and 2004, to document the role of the intensive care unit (ICU) in this response.
The SZMC Disaster Plan was reviewed in detail. Hospital and ICU records were retrospectively reviewed for all patients presenting to SZMC between 1983 and 2004 after a TMCE. Data were coded for age, sex, injuries, length of stay, and mortality.
Eight hundred seventy-five patients presented to SZMC after 31 TMCEs. The number of patients presenting ranged from 1 to 84 with an average of 28 patients per TMCE. Forty-one (4.7%) of the patients were admitted to the ICU. The age of the ICU patients ranged from 4 to 80 with an average of 30.9 years. Twenty-nine (70%) of the patients had blast lung injury, 3 (7%) had intestinal blast injury, and 30 (73%) had ruptured tympanic membranes. Forty-two surgical procedures were performed in 23 patients. Thirty (73%) patients required mechanical ventilation. One patient (2.4%) died of multiple organ failure caused by a delay in diagnosis of intestinal blast injury.
Of the patients presenting to SZMC after TMCE, 4.7% required ICU care. Seventy-three percent of the ICU patients required mechanical ventilation. The ICU plays a critical role in the SZMC response to TMCEs.

0 0
 · 
0 Bookmarks
 · 
61 Views
Data provided are for informational purposes only. Although carefully collected, accuracy cannot be guaranteed. The impact factor represents a rough estimation of the journal's impact factor and does not reflect the actual current impact factor. Publisher conditions are provided by RoMEO. Differing provisions from the publisher's actual policy or licence agreement may be applicable.

Full-text (2 Sources)

View
8 Downloads
Available from
9 Jan 2013

Keywords

23 patients
 
28 patients
 
critical role
 
ICU care
 
ICU patients
 
ICU records
 
injuries
 
intensive care unit
 
intestinal blast injury
 
mass-casualty events
 
mechanical ventilation
 
multiple organ failure
 
patients
 
Shaare Zedek Medical Center
 
SZMC
 
SZMC Disaster Plan
 
SZMC response
 
terrorist multiple-
 
TMCEs
 
tympanic membranes