During a mass casualty incident, the nurse’s primary function in triage is to do what?

• A. Prioritize objective, rapid assessments to categorize patients for treatment
• B. Provide definitive healing interventions to all
• C. Manage only the hospital supplies
• D. Direct security and crowd control

Answer: (A)

In mass casualty triage, the key aim is to quickly identify who needs life-saving care right away and who can wait, so scarce resources are used where they’ll save the most lives. Nurses perform objective, rapid assessments to categorize patients for treatment, setting priorities so the most critical cases receive attention first. This approach makes triage practical in chaotic conditions and helps maximize overall outcomes. Providing definitive healing to everyone isn’t feasible in such scenarios, and triage isn’t about managing all supplies or directing security—those functions fall outside the immediate prioritization work that triage requires.