The injuries and management of riot casualties admitted to the belfast hospital wards, August to October, 1969

Abstract

Abstract Belfast has experienced intermittent rioting for 18 months. An analysis of riot casualties admitted to the wards of Belfast hospitals from 1 Aug. to 31 Oct., 1969, is presented. Approximately 500 casualties came to hospital and of these only 164 were admitted. Eighty-three (50·6 per cent of admissions) required surgery. One-third of all admissions had left hospital within 48 hours and only 23 (14 per cent) remained for longer than 2 weeks. The demand for resuscitation was not high and the need for blood unexpectedly low. We describe in this article the types of injury and the treatment they were given. During rioting there are many reasons why surgical preparations may exceed the need for them. Pro-longed dislocation of normal hospital services does not seem justified by the pattern which emerged. The reception of the large number of casualties arriving over a 2–3-hour period on the first peak night is discussed. Some of the ethical difficulties of the riot situation are mentioned. Problems of internal security and communication are discussed.