title: Expect 2 waves of patients after terrorist attack.
abstract: A study examining patient arrival at local EDs after the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma has shown there are two "waves" of patients after a terrorist attack. Contrary to popular belief, after a mass casualty incident, most patients arrive by means other than ambulance transport. Because the first group of patients arriving at EDs are transporting themselves, they tend to be of less severity than the second wave of patients. While triaging patients from the first wave, you need to prepare for more serious injuries in the second.
mesh_terms: D004189:Disaster Planning; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009825:Oklahoma; D014187:Transportation of Patients; D014754:Violence