Triage.

Triage is the medical assessment of patients in an emergency as a means of prioritizing treatment. In the event of a mass casualty incident or other crisis when medical resources are limited, triage is used as a way of quickly assessing patients' conditions and ensuring that those in the most serious condition receive treatment first. Triage plans typically include a color-coded system of classification used to categorize and identify each patient's level of need so that medical care can be provided as efficiently and effectively as possible. Many hospital emergency rooms also use triage as a way of prioritizing medical care even in noncrisis situations. The concept of triage has applications outside of medicine as well. In the context of information technology, for example, triage procedures are often used to prioritize various incoming system tasks as a way of determining the order in which each one should be addressed.