Reliability and Validity of a New Computer-Based Triage Decision Support Tool: ANKUTRIAGE

Area of Science:

• Emergency Medicine
• Clinical Informatics

Background:

• Triage is critical for assessing patient severity upon arrival.
• Existing triage methods can be subjective and time-consuming.

Purpose of the Study:

• To prospectively evaluate the reliability and validity of ANKUTRIAGE, a novel computer-based triage decision support tool.
• To assess ANKUTRIAGE's performance in an emergency department setting.

Main Methods:

• ANKUTRIAGE, a 5-level triage system, utilizes vital signs and complaint characteristics.
• Adult patients were prospectively double-triaged by two assessors using ANKUTRIAGE.
• Inter-rater reliability was measured using quadratic-weighted kappa coefficients (Kw); validity was assessed via correlations with resource use and clinical outcomes.

Main Results:

• ANKUTRIAGE showed excellent inter-rater reliability (Kw > 0.8) across all assessed groups.
• Urgency levels demonstrated a significant inverse correlation with hospitalization, ICU admission, and mortality rates (P < 0.05).
• Resource utilization significantly decreased as triage levels decreased (P < 0.05).

Conclusions:

• ANKUTRIAGE is a valid and reliable tool for emergency department triage.
• The system's guided decision-making enhances inter-rater agreement.
• Strong correlations exist between ANKUTRIAGE urgency levels, clinical outcomes, and resource consumption.