Updated Field Triage Guidelines: CDC Gets the Word Out

CDC-funded research shows that the risk of death for a severely injured person is 25 percent lower if the patient receives care at a Level 1 trauma center. Of course, not every patient needs to be triaged to a Level 1 trauma center. Sometimes taking a less severely injured patient to the closest hospital is the life-saving decision.

In fact, taking every patient to a Level 1 or 2 trauma center would quickly overburden those facilities and negatively impact patient care. So getting field triage right is all about getting the right patient to the right facility at the right time.

Field triage decisions made by our nation's one million EMS providers have enormous implications for patient outcomes and our emergency care system. That's why it's so critical that all EMS professionals be familiar with the latest update to the American College of Surgeon's field triage guidelines.

In January 2009, the CDC published the "Field Triage Decision Scheme: The National Trauma Triage Protocol" (Decision Scheme) in its MMWR Recommendations and Reports. With support from NHTSA, the CDC's Division of Injury Control has implemented an impressive and far-reaching EMS educational initiative via the Web that includes:

• Continuing Field Triage Education and Online Exams
• MMWR Recommendations and Reports
• Field Triage PowerPoint
• Print Ads, Web Banners, and Promotional Flyers
• Posters, Pocket Cards, Badges, and Inserts
• Video and Audio Podcasts
• New Training Guide for EMS Leaders

Join thousands in the EMS community who have already taken advantage of these free tools and resources to help them make more informed and life-saving triage decisions. Don't be left behind. If you're an EMS professional, visit the CDC's Division of Injury Control's Field Triage Web site at your earliest available opportunity.