Related Experiment Videos
Web-based triage in a college health setting.
Mary Lou Sole1, Patricia L Stuart, Michael Deichen
1University of Central Florida School of Nursing, Orlando 32816-2210, USA. msole@mail.ucf.edu
Journal of American College Health : J of ACH
|March 17, 2006
Summary
A new web-based triage system in college health successfully managed student concerns, with high usage and accuracy. It provided timely advice, recommending self-care for nearly a quarter of users.
Area of Science:
- Health Informatics
- Digital Health
- Student Health Services
Background:
- College health services face increasing demands.
- Web-based tools offer potential solutions for efficient patient management.
- Triage systems are crucial for prioritizing care in healthcare settings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the implementation and utilization of a web-based triage system in a college health setting.
- To evaluate the accuracy and effectiveness of the web-based triage system.
- To assess student engagement with digital health tools for managing health concerns.
Main Methods:
- Implementation of a web-based triage system in a college health center.
- Data collection on 1,290 student encounters over four months.
- Statistical analysis, including kappa statistics, to assess congruence between chief complaint, web-based classification, and diagnoses.
Main Results:
- The system recorded 1,290 encounters, primarily used by women (70%) with an average age of 21.8 years.
- Sore throat was the most frequent chief complaint (14.2%).
- High congruence was found between chief complaint and system classification (kappa = .94), and between system classification and diagnoses (kappa = .89).
Conclusions:
- The web-based triage system demonstrated high utilization and accuracy in a college health setting.
- The system effectively provided education and advice, recommending self-care in 22.7% of cases.
- Web-based triage is a valuable tool for enhancing student healthcare accessibility and management.