Developing and implementing a surgical response and physician triage team

Area of Science:

• Disaster Medicine
• Emergency Medical Services
• Trauma Surgery

Background:

• Disaster situations necessitate adaptive trauma care strategies.
• The Medical College of Pennsylvania Hospital established a specialized physician team for mass casualty incidents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present the development process of a physician field response team.
• To share practical "lessons learned" from 15 years of team deployment.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive presentation of team development.
• Analysis of operational experiences over 15 years.

Main Results:

• The physician field response team has been successfully mobilized multiple times.
• The team's approach has been iteratively improved based on practical experience.

Conclusions:

• A dedicated physician field response team is crucial for effective disaster trauma care.
• Continuous refinement based on real-world incidents enhances team efficacy.