Which triage method is typically used in pre-hospital settings?

The START (Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment) triage method is widely used in pre-hospital settings due to its effectiveness and ease of use in mass casualty incidents. This system enables first responders to rapidly assess and categorize casualties based on vital signs and the severity of their injuries. The key features of START include a quick initial assessment that evaluates the patient’s ability to walk, respiratory status, and perfusion, categorizing patients into colors or triage categories to prioritize treatment efficiently.

START is especially valuable in chaotic environments where time is of the essence, allowing emergency medical personnel to make rapid decisions on who needs immediate care and who can wait. It focuses on physiological criteria for determining whether patients are "green" (walking wounded), "yellow" (delayed), "red" (immediate), or "black" (deceased), which facilitates a streamlined response to emergencies.

In contrast, other methods listed may not be as suited to the urgent and dynamic conditions encountered in pre-hospital settings. For example, MALT and SALY are less common and typically not specifically designed for rapid, mass casualty triage scenarios. The ABCDE method, while practical for primary assessments in certain medical situations, is not primarily a triage protocol for mass casualty events