Triage in the emergency department

Accurate patient triage to provide early identification of potentially seriously ill or high-risk infants and children is an important part of any emergency care system. Use of the SAVE-A-CHILD mnemonic in a busy ED setting provides systematic organization of important clinical observations that may serve as markers of serious disease. Early recognition of the high-risk patient will reduce morbidity and mortality. The discussion included may be helpful to emergency physicians in training their staff to provide a safe triage environment.