Planning for major burns incidents in the UK using an accelerated Delphi technique.

Abstract

Major incidents require careful planning if they are to be managed well. Although a generic plan to deal with all major incidents is essential, a number of "special incidents" deserve special consideration because of their potential to impact on specialist services. This paper examines the problems of managing a major incident involving large numbers of burns casualties. A three-round Delphi study was conducted using a multidisciplinary panel of experts from prehospital care, emergency medicine, burns surgery, intensive care and emergency planning. A series of consensus statements on the management of burns incidents are presented. An accompanying paper describes the practical implementation of this guidance. Specific consideration should be given to the problems of managing a major incident involving burns casualties.