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Background: Triage is an important tool that enables the effective allocation of resources in the emergency department. Although under triage leads to greater complications and over triage leads to the overuse of resources, no study has yet been conducted examining triage accuracy in Srinagarind Hospital.
Objective: To evaluate the accuracy of triage performed by nurses and doctors compared to standard triage using the Emergency Severity Index (ESI).
Materials and Methods: This was a prospective descriptive study that compared triage performed by nurses and doctors with standard triage in 367 patients who presented at Srinagarind Hospital’s emergency department from August to October 2017.
Results: Triage performed by nurses was accurate in 258 cases (70.30%), with over triage in 45 cases (12.26%) and under triage in 64 (17.44%). That performed by doctors was accurate in 265 cases (72.21%), with over triage in 52 cases (14.17%) and under triage in 50 (13.62%).
Conclusion: There was no significant difference in the accuracy of triage performed by nurses and doctors.
Keywords: Triage, Emergency Service, Health resources, Nurses, Emergencies