Are Telephone Triage Guidelines Safe & Reliable ?

Posted by Sheila Wheeler on Feb 14, 2014 in Articles of Interest, FAQ Telephone Triage, FAQ-Protocol | 1 comment How to Evaluate Telephone Triage Guidelines and Protocols It is safe to say that telephone triage guidelines are still in “early days”.  No independent, peer-reviewed, comparative study has found one guideline system to be safer than all others.  In fact,  errors and delays in care still plague telephone triage. According to the Institute of Medicine, error is defined as the...
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Are Telephone Triage Nurses Using Guidelines?

Posted by Sheila Wheeler on Feb 13, 2014 in Articles of Interest, Current, FAQ Telephone Triage, FAQ Teletriage Systems, FAQ-Protocol | 0 comments RECENT RESEARCH has found that Computerized Decision Support Systems (CDSS) do not perform effectively (or possibly safely)as decision support tools. Technical deficiencies included: not supportive of decision making, inconsistent documentation leading to mistriage, unintended self-care recommendations, information missing or outdated, questions subject to variable interpretation, clinical...
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Emergency Department Telephone Triage

Posted by Sheila Wheeler on Dec 6, 2013 in Articles of Interest, Current, FAQ Telephone Triage, FAQ Teletriage Systems, FAQ-Protocol | 0 comments Are Current Policies Safe? Recent research found a link between Oregon patients on Medicaid and increased ED visits, with possible implications for theAffordable Care Act (ACA).   For several decades, the issue of ED overutilization has been identified as a problem.  Historically, ED visits may be preceded by a telephone triage call to the ED for assessment and disposition — which most EDs...
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Decision making by Telephone Triage Nurses

Posted by Sheila Wheeler on Nov 26, 2013 in Articles of Interest, Current, FAQ Telephone Triage, FAQ Teletriage Systems, FAQ-Protocol | 1 comment Pattern Recognition and Estimation of Symptom Urgency Recent research on decisionmaking has implications for clinical decision making in telephone triage, CDSS, clinical call center policies, and industry regulations — worker fatigue, understaffing, over scheduling. Thinking Critically about Critical Thinking “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities. In the expert’s mind there...
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Is Current Telephone Triage Research Disconnected?

Posted by Sheila Wheeler on Nov 15, 2013 in Articles of Interest, Current, FAQ Telephone Triage, FAQ Teletriage Systems, FAQ-Protocol | 2 comments  False Assumptions about Electronic Guidelines, Clinical Assessment & Decision Making Research and “Real World” Practice: A Major Disconnect Since the mid-nineties, the telephone triage industry has experienced breathtaking growth. Still, there is a lack of consensus about everything from scope of practice to terminology. For example, which title describes most accurately what clinicians do:...
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Telephone Triage: A Future Calling?

Posted by Sheila Wheeler on Nov 1, 2013 in 1987-2001, Articles of Interest, FAQ Telephone Triage, FAQ Teletriage Systems, FAQ-Protocol | 0 comments Written in 1987 by Sheila Wheeler  Telephone triage is the process of evaluating, advising, educating and making safe disposition of client health problems by phone. It is a specialized field, still in its infancy. Generally, it includes screening of medical, emotional and informational problems. Telephone triage is often practiced in areas outside of the hospital setting; it may also be used as...
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