This prompt card provides a quick reference of the Field Trauma Triage Standard contained in the Basic Life Support Patient Care Standards (BLS PCS). Please refer to the BLS PCS for the full standard.
Triage Decision Flow
Regionally Designated Equivalent Hospital
means an appropriately resourced hospital facility as defined by the Regional Trauma Network of Critical Care Services Ontario and included in a local PPS.
Transport Time
means the time from scene departure to time of arrival at destination.
The paramedic shall perform the Field Trauma Triage Standard for all patients who have sustained a traumatic mechanism of injury.
The paramedic shall use the Air Ambulance Utilization Standard to determine whether air ambulance transport is appropriate for a trauma patient.
The paramedic shall refer to the Trauma Termination of Resuscitation (TOR) standard for trauma patients who meet the criteria for termination of resuscitation. Transport authorization is determined by the criteria in the Procedure below.
*The 30 minute transport time may be amended to up to 60 minutes as per an ambulance service PPS, but may not exceed 60 minutes.
**If unable to secure the patient's airway or survival to the LTH or regionally designated equivalent hospital is unlikely, transport the patient to the closest ED (unless patient has penetrating trauma to the torso or head/neck). Consider the Trauma TOR as per the ALS PCS.