Five Challenges When Managing Mass Casualty or Disaster Situations: A Review Study.

Area of Science:

• Disaster management
• Crisis response
• Public health preparedness

Background:

• Managing mass casualty or disaster incidents is inherently challenging.
• This paper focuses on sudden-onset, man-made, or technologically caused events.
• Case and lessons learned reports are utilized to identify common challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and describe common challenges in managing mass casualty or disaster incidents.
• To analyze lessons learned from past events to improve future responses.
• To provide insights for enhancing disaster management strategies.

Main Methods:

• A management review approach was employed.
• A structured search of the PubMed and Web of Science databases was conducted.
• Analysis of 20 case and lessons learned reports from diverse geographical locations.

Main Results:

• Five common challenges were identified: situation identification amidst uncertainty, balancing plans with reality, establishing functional crisis organizations, adapting medical responses, and ensuring response resilience.
• Reports covered natural disasters, man-made events, and accidents across Europe, USA, Asia, and the Middle East.
• Key challenges were linked to managing uncertainty and adapting to surprising situations.

Conclusions:

• Effective mass casualty incident management hinges on the ability to navigate uncertainty and adapt using structured processes.
• Organizational and individual flexibility in mindset, organization, and procedures is crucial for resilient disaster response.
• Non-medical and internal factors significantly influence medical management during crises, necessitating holistic consideration.