Preparedness and Response to a Rural Mass Casualty Incident

Problems contacting emergency services and delayed assistance are not unusual when incidents occur in rural areas, and the consequences can be devastating, particularly with mass casualty incidents. The IOM's Forum on Medical and Public Health Preparedness for Catastrophic Events held a workshop to examine the current capabilities of emergency response systems and the future opportunities to improve mass casualty response in rural communities.

Table of Contents


Front Matter
1 Introduction
2 Case Examples: 2008 Mexican Hat, Utah, Incident and 2010 Albert Pike, Arkansas, Flood
3 9-1-1 Access and Communications
4 Challenges Facing the Prehospital System
5 Coordination and Integration Across Response Platforms
6 Establishing Metrics to Assess Risk and Capabilities
7 Improving Rural Mass Casualty Response in the United States
8 Needs and Opportunities
Appendix A: References
Appendix B: Workshop Agenda
Appendix C: Biographical Sketches of Invited Speakers and Panelists