Letters
Nurse triage increases emergency department waiting times
EDITOR,--When considering guidelines for triage by nurses in accident and emergency departments Andrew B Bindman states that "it is less problematic if guidelines systematically recommend care in the accident and emergency department for some patients who could be treated in alternative settings than it is if they routinely recommend alternative care for patients who truly are emergencies."1 This statement is not the truism it seems to be at first glance.
Our study of triage by nurses in an accident and emergency department showed that the process delayed those patients in most urgent need of attention.2 In a formal system of triage the triage nurse must place each patient into a category. It will be relatively easy to categorise some patients as "in need of immediate treatment" and others as "not really in need of treatment at all," but the trouble lies with those who fall in between. When there is
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- Triage in accident and emergency departments
- Andrew B Bindman
BMJ 1995 311: 404.[Extract] [Full Text]
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