Related Experiment Videos
Disaster nomenclature--a functional impact approach: the PICE system
K L Koenig1, N Dinerman, A E Kuehl
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Alameda County Medical Center, Highland General Hospital, CA, USA. kristik@hghed.com
Summary
A new nomenclature, "potential injury-creating event" (PICE), offers a standardized way to describe disasters. This system uses modifiers and stages to communicate the need for outside medical assistance, aiding disaster management.
Area of Science:
- Emergency Medicine
- Disaster Management
- Public Health
Background:
- Current disaster terminology lacks standardization, hindering effective communication and planning.
- A concise and universally understood system for classifying disaster events is needed.
- Existing disaster descriptions do not consistently convey the scale of resource needs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce a novel nomenclature system for describing disasters.
- To develop a taxonomy that standardizes disaster event descriptions.
- To create a system that clearly communicates the need for external medical assistance.
Main Methods:
- Proposed a root word 'PICE' (potential injury-creating event) as a replacement for 'disaster'.
- Developed descriptive modifiers categorized into potential for additional casualties, resource overwhelm (disruptive/paralytic), and geographic extent.
- Introduced a 'Stage' (0-III) to quantify the likelihood of requiring outside medical assistance.
Main Results:
- The PICE system provides a structured, multi-modifier approach to disaster description.
- Each PICE is assigned a 'Stage' indicating the urgency of external medical support.
- Example provided: a 'static, controlled, local PICE, stage 0' for a multi-vehicle crash in a large city.
Conclusions:
- The PICE nomenclature offers a concise and informative method for describing disaster events.
- This system effectively communicates the need for external medical resources.
- The model has potential applications in disaster planning, management, and research.