The lifeline of triage

Most acute hospitals operate a triage system to evaluate and prioritize the care and needs of clients presenting in the Emergency department. The emergency nurse, therefore, employs a variety of cognitive processes to clinically categorize clients in relation to the most acute need. This ability to clinically assess is a combination of knowledge and intuition grounded in experience and formal education. Therefore, the optimal functioning of the Emergency department is dependent upon not only the protocols and policies of hospitals, but the skills, experience and the confidence of individual triage nurses. This paper will reconsider the role of the triage nurse by addressing a literature deficit related to triage and the triage nurse, as the front line mediator, who is in the prime position of being able to rise the professional profile of the emergency nurse by making visible the care provided by nurses in this department and, most significantly, in the triage waiting room. This care extends beyond pointing to the waiting room clock and a sign which informs clients of the purposes of the emergency care department. This paper will also discuss a range of strategies used by the authors to enhance effective triaging to ensure a quality standard in client care.