A triage call is a rapid assessment process used by healthcare professionals to quickly sort patients based on the severity of their condition and the urgency of their need for medical attention. This process is rooted in the French word “trier,” meaning to sort or categorize. The core function of a triage call is to determine who needs immediate care and who can safely wait, ultimately ensuring timely treatment for those most at risk. Prioritizing patients prevents the most critically ill or injured individuals from being delayed in receiving life-saving interventions.
The Core Purpose of Triage Calls
The fundamental goal of any triage system is to ensure patient safety while optimizing the utilization of limited medical resources. When a medical facility is faced with more patients than it can treat simultaneously, triage acts as a mechanism to allocate staff, equipment, and treatment areas effectively. This practice establishes a priority for care based on the immediate threat to a person’s life or limb, rather than providing a final diagnosis.
Triage is primarily a tool for risk mitigation, preventing the deterioration of patients whose conditions could rapidly worsen if treatment is delayed. A successful triage call directs a patient to the safest and most appropriate level of care, which may be an emergency room, an urgent care center, or a simple self-care recommendation.
Step-by-Step Triage Assessment
The assessment phase of a triage call begins with gathering basic demographic information and the patient’s chief complaint. The healthcare professional, often a specially trained nurse, then uses a set of structured questions to evaluate the patient’s current symptoms and medical history. This structured approach ensures that no potentially serious symptom is overlooked during the rapid evaluation.
For remote triage calls, like those conducted over the phone, the clinician relies entirely on the caller’s description of symptoms and any reported vital signs, such as temperature or heart rate. The nurse must use clinical judgment and established protocols to infer the patient’s status, focusing on the mental state and signs of compromised breathing or circulation. These protocols function as decision trees, guiding the nurse through a series of scripted questions that systematically rule out or confirm life-threatening conditions.
In a physical setting, the assessment also includes a brief, focused physical examination and the measurement of objective vital signs like blood pressure, respiratory rate, and oxygen saturation. The ultimate goal is a rapid evaluation of the patient’s stability, often following the Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, and Exposure (ABCDE) framework to identify immediate threats. The information collected is then used to assign an acuity score, which determines the priority for medical intervention.
Determining Levels of Patient Urgency
The outcome of the triage assessment is the assignment of a patient urgency level, which dictates the maximum time a patient can safely wait for a medical evaluation. Most modern triage systems, such as the Emergency Severity Index (ESI) used in the United States or the Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale (CTAS), utilize a five-level scale. Level 1, known as Resuscitation, is reserved for patients requiring immediate, life-saving intervention, such as those experiencing cardiac arrest or severe respiratory distress.
Patients classified as Level 2, or Emergent, are in high-risk situations where their condition could rapidly deteriorate, like those with severe chest pain or an altered mental status. They require immediate attention and rapid treatment, often within minutes of arrival.
Level 3 is designated for Urgent conditions, like a fever with moderate pain, where treatment can be delayed for a short period, typically up to 30 minutes. Level 4, Less Urgent, and Level 5, Non-Urgent, are for patients with minor issues like a simple sprain or a request for a prescription refill, who can safely wait for an extended period. These lower levels are often differentiated by the number of hospital resources the patient is expected to need, helping to streamline the flow of non-critical patients.
Common Environments for Triage
Triage calls are a standard procedure across various healthcare environments. The most common location for in-person triage is the Emergency Department (ED), where a triage nurse performs a quick assessment upon a patient’s arrival to assign an acuity level and direct them to the appropriate treatment area. This process is designed to manage the high volume of patients with varying degrees of illness or injury seen in the ED.
Triage is also routinely conducted remotely through Nurse Hotlines and Telehealth services, where a nurse assesses a patient’s symptoms over the phone. This telephonic triage uses established decision-support tools to determine if the patient requires an ambulance, a visit to an urgent care center, a scheduled doctor’s appointment, or can manage their symptoms at home. This remote model improves accessibility and helps prevent unnecessary visits to the emergency room.
Primary Care Offices also use triage to manage patient appointments. They decide if a patient with an acute concern needs a same-day visit or can be scheduled for a later date.