Telephone Triage Nursing

In today’s busy world, the need for nurses is exceptionally high.
While most nurses operate in a hospital or clinic setting, there is
also a need for telephone triage nursing. This particular nursing style
does not involve hands on nursing, but instead involves assisting
patients or people over the telephone that are in need of fast, triage
care. There are many courses designed to help train nurses in the
methods used in telephone triage nursing. There are several basic steps
which one must follow in order to perform telephone triage nursing.
First, you want to introduce yourself and get the caller’s name so that
you can establish a rapport with them. Next, you’ll need to record
vital information from the person calling as quickly as possible such
as the patient’s name, date of birth, location, symptoms, any
medications they are currently taking and any allergies (if any), as
well as their weight and doctor’s name and telephone number.

While
practicing telephone triage nursing, there are many questions that
should be asked. You will want to ask the patient where the pain is
occurring, how severe it is, and what, if anything, is making it feel
better or worse. You will also ask the patient how severe it is, and
when it started. Getting a timeline of the problem is absolutely
essential. In addition, the patient should be able to tell you whether
or not they’ve had treatment before for the problem, and if they are
currently taking any medication for it. All of this information allows
the nurse to assess the problem with the patient, and allows them to
refer them to their primary care physician, apply something like a cold
compress, take an additional dose of medicine, or be referred to a
hospital. In severe or extreme cases, the nurse should always advise
the caller to hang up and immediately contact 911.