by Julie K Briggs

Performing telephone triage requires the ability to make quick and effective decisions based on limited information.This rapid-access resource delivers over 200 triage protocols for evaluating patients’ symptoms over the telephone. Each symptom entry lists questions, grouped by urgency level, to determine whether the caller should seek emergency care immediately, seek medical care the same day, call back for appointment, or follow home care instructions. Detailed home care instructions are then provided. Simple, direct, and useful, this is the most comprehensive and user-friendly telephone triage book available.

This new edition features several new protocols—swine flu (H1N1 virus), bedbug problems, tattoo problems, and emergency contraception—as well as new information in the introductory chapter about program development, management issues, and staff development, including training. Other features include a new reminder about documentation in each protocol, a new anatomic Table of Contents, and expanded home care instructions.

This handy, spiralbound manual presents approximately 200 adult and pediatric patient protocols and their related home care instructions. This rapid-access guide helps to quickly detect the urgency of a caller’s problem by suggesting appropriate questions, grouped according to degree of urgency. Nurses will easily recognize who needs immediate medical attention, who should be seen within 24 hours, and who can be monitored at home. In addition to “at-your-fingertips” guidance, the book addresses legal issues, thus lessening the risk of liability. A format is provided for setting up a telephone triage program.

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