Which principle guides ethical triage in disaster or mass casualty scenarios?

Which principle guides ethical triage in disaster or mass casualty scenarios?

• A. Treat all equally
• B. Preserve maximum lives saved
• C. Prioritize staff preferences
• D. Follow patient requests only

Answer: (B)

Maximizing the number of lives saved with the scarce resources available is the guiding principle in disaster or mass casualty triage. When many patients compete for limited treatment, decisions focus on who is most likely to benefit from care and thus contribute to the overall survival of the group. This approach prioritizes those with a reasonable chance of recovery with the intervention and allocates resources to maximize total lives saved, rather than treating everyone equally or following non-clinical preferences. The other options don’t fit because they either assume equal treatment in impossible circumstances, base decisions on staff wishes, or rely solely on patient requests, all of which can lead to poorer overall outcomes in a mass casualty event.

Maximizing the number of lives saved with the scarce resources available is the guiding principle in disaster or mass casualty triage. When many patients compete for limited treatment, decisions focus on who is most likely to benefit from care and thus contribute to the overall survival of the group. This approach prioritizes those with a reasonable chance of recovery with the intervention and allocates resources to maximize total lives saved, rather than treating everyone equally or following non-clinical preferences. The other options don’t fit because they either assume equal treatment in impossible circumstances, base decisions on staff wishes, or rely solely on patient requests, all of which can lead to poorer overall outcomes in a mass casualty event.