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Refining Emergency Severity Index triage criteria.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Tanabe, P; Travers, D; Gilboy, N; Rosenau, A; Sierzega, G; Rupp, V; Martinovich, Z; Adams, JG
Published in: Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
June 2005

The Emergency Severity Index (ESI) version 3 is a five-level triage acuity scale with demonstrated reliability and validity. Patients are rated from ESI level 1 (highest acuity) to ESI level 5 (lowest acuity). Clinical experience has demonstrated two levels of ESI level 2 patients: those who require immediate intervention and those who are stable to wait for at least ten minutes. Studies have found that few patients are rated ESI level 1, and it has been suggested that revisions to the ESI might result in appropriate reclassification of some sickest level 2 patients as level 1. The purpose of this study was to identify level 2 patients who might be reclassified as level 1 patients.This was a multisite, prospective study. The authors identified ESI level 2 patients who required immediate, lifesaving intervention and calculated chi-square statistics and odds ratios for variables that predicted which ESI level 2 patients actually received immediate intervention.Immediate lifesaving interventions were provided for 117 (20.2%) of the 589 patients included in the study. Seventeen predictors of the need for immediate intervention were identified. The strongest predictor was the triage nurse's judgment of the need for immediate intervention, especially airway and medications.Specific clinical findings at triage for a subset of ESI level 2 patients were associated with immediate delivery of lifesaving interventions. Revisions to the ESI level 1 criteria may be beneficial.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine

DOI

EISSN

1553-2712

ISSN

1069-6563

Publication Date

June 2005

Volume

12

Issue

6

Start / End Page

497 / 501

Related Subject Headings

  • Triage
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Prospective Studies
  • Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Emergency Nursing
 

Citation

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Tanabe, P., Travers, D., Gilboy, N., Rosenau, A., Sierzega, G., Rupp, V., … Adams, J. G. (2005). Refining Emergency Severity Index triage criteria. Academic Emergency Medicine : Official Journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, 12(6), 497–501. https://doi.org/10.1197/j.aem.2004.12.015
Tanabe, Paula, Debbie Travers, Nicki Gilboy, Alex Rosenau, Gina Sierzega, Valerie Rupp, Zoran Martinovich, and James G. Adams. “Refining Emergency Severity Index triage criteria.Academic Emergency Medicine : Official Journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine 12, no. 6 (June 2005): 497–501. https://doi.org/10.1197/j.aem.2004.12.015.
Tanabe P, Travers D, Gilboy N, Rosenau A, Sierzega G, Rupp V, et al. Refining Emergency Severity Index triage criteria. Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 2005 Jun;12(6):497–501.
Tanabe, Paula, et al. “Refining Emergency Severity Index triage criteria.Academic Emergency Medicine : Official Journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, vol. 12, no. 6, June 2005, pp. 497–501. Epmc, doi:10.1197/j.aem.2004.12.015.
Tanabe P, Travers D, Gilboy N, Rosenau A, Sierzega G, Rupp V, Martinovich Z, Adams JG. Refining Emergency Severity Index triage criteria. Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 2005 Jun;12(6):497–501.
Journal cover image

Published In

Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine

DOI

EISSN

1553-2712

ISSN

1069-6563

Publication Date

June 2005

Volume

12

Issue

6

Start / End Page

497 / 501

Related Subject Headings

  • Triage
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Prospective Studies
  • Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Emergency Nursing