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Gorick, Hugh 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3089-9830, McGee, Marie and Smith, Toby O. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1673-2954
(2024)
Understanding the Decision-Making Practices Used by Registered Nurses Assessing Acuity at Triage in Emergency Departments in the UK: A National Survey.
In: RCN International Nursing Research Conference 2024, 2024-09-10 - 2024-09-12, Northumbria University.
Abstract
Background: In the UK, people who attend the emergency department are triaged upon arrival to assess how rapidly they need treatment, with triage being most often completed by nurses (Edwards et al., 2021). However, uncertainty exists surrounding the background and triage training of these nurses, and the quality of the decision-making processes they use when assessing patient acuity (Gorick et al., 2023) . This exploratory study aimed to investigate the demographics and decision-making processes of triage nurses in UK emergency departments. The conference presentation will report the findings of this study. Methods: This was a mixed-methods, online cross-sectional survey design, with participants recruited via social media in June and July 2023. The study was submitted to and approved by the UEA FMH ethics committee [ETH2223-1877, granted 24/5/23]. Results: 51 UK nurses were recruited. Utilising the Triage Decision-Making Inventory (Smith &Cone, 2010) revealed high scoring for all domains: cognitive characteristics (mean 4.8), critical thinking (mean 4.8), experience (mean 4.8), and intuition (mean 4.2). Intuition was the lowest scoring domain, in contrast to similar studies in other countries, and this was explored in context to triage training. Training for triage was non-standardised with 82% of participants receiving no or beginner training and only 13% of emergency departments offering regular updates. Satisfaction with amount of training was 37%. Four themes were established from qualitative analysis: triaging the situation; stress, control and assimilation; maintaining safety through decisive actions; and prioritising the sickest. Conclusions: This study represents the first survey of the decision-making processes of triage nurses in the UK. The findings have led to recommendations regarding safe staffing, standardisation of training and ensuring nurses’ welfare. These aim to improve the abilities of nurses to make safe and effective triage decisions, and to improve the triage environment, which will lead to improved outcomes for both the patients and nurses.
| Item Type: | Conference or Workshop Item (Other) |
|---|---|
| Faculty \ School: | Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > School of Health Sciences |
| UEA Research Groups: | Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Centres > Lifespan Health Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Dementia & Complexity in Later Life |
| Related URLs: | |
| Depositing User: | LivePure Connector |
| Date Deposited: | 19 Sep 2024 10:30 |
| Last Modified: | 19 Sep 2024 10:30 |
| URI: | https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/96772 |
| DOI: |
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