At TriageLogic, our primary focus has always been to help patient callers understand the severity of their symptoms and the best way to address them. That’s why, when our nurse triage service received a glowing evaluation from a medical auditor, we reached out to discuss which aspects were the most effective from their perspective. Read on to learn more about their rave review when posing as a patient for one of our telephone triage nurses.
Empathy Is Essential
While we aren’t permitted to go into the specifics about the scenario for his call with our nurse, we are able to highlight what parts of the interaction he felt were the most effective.
During our interview, the caller praised our nurse for their excellent care and communication. He went so far as to rate them “a 20 out of 10,” stating that if he was still in that field, he would have hired them on the spot based on this single interaction.
While the caller noted our nurse’s friendly demeanor and ability to answer all of his questions thoroughly, he highlighted our nurse’s empathy — particularly, the genuine concern he felt the nurse exhibited about his reason for calling and his well-being. That empathy is essential for all nurse triage interactions, regardless of how difficult or concerning the symptoms or situations may be for patients. Callers simply want to feel heard, valued, and validated with their requests. Learning that our nurse was delivering this level of compassion was not only heartwarming to us, but also an affirmation of the type of care that we strive to provide every patient.
Beyond the caller’s evaluation, we were curious what one of our supervisors had to say about observing this nurse’s performance. We came to find that she mirrored his sentiments, noting that “[our nurse’s] outstanding nursing skills, coupled with his excellent judgment and ability to work well in a team, have made him a valuable asset to our organization. I am thrilled to witness his continued growth with our team.”
Why Nurse Triage Is Necessary
Many patients who are ill have difficulty understanding how severe their symptoms are, and whether they need to seek professional medical attention. Triage nurses are necessary because they offer a convenient means of reviewing these symptoms over the phone, and advising patients whether a visit to a primary care physician or an emergency department is warranted.
Setting up a triage support system is relatively easy — even more so by outsourcing this solution to us. When patients call your office, they’ll be greeted by one of our answering service operators from our call center, who will note your patients’ symptoms and share that information with our triage nurses. Our nurses will determine the severity of those symptoms and prioritize patient callbacks based on symptom urgency. They will then use Schmitt-Thompson nurse triage protocols to evaluate all symptoms with your patients over the phone, before offering dispositions to them on which types of care (at-home, PCP, or ER) are best suited to meet their needs.
Available Nurse Triage Services
Depending on your current level of nurse triage, you may benefit from implementing one or more of these solutions.
MedMessage Assist. Our AI-based module helps answering service/nonclinical operators clarify any important symptoms that your patients mention when they initially call your office. This ensures that the messages they relay to your triage nurses will accurately reflect the urgency of those symptoms.
MyTriageChecklist. Our nurse triage software is the most intuitive option on the market today, offering a convenient means of documenting all patient interactions and sharing that data directly and securely with the appropriate healthcare providers. It enables customizable paths to care, and includes nurse triage protocols.
Schmitt-Thompson Protocols. If you don’t require nurse triage software, you can still purchase daytime and after-hours versions of triage protocols separately. These can be used by your nurses to determine what types of care your patients need, from newborns to older adults. Protocols are peer reviewed and updated both annually and after major medical events.
Nurse Triage On Call. If you don’t have the resources and in-house team members available to manage these types of triage calls, we offer an outsourced medical call center of registered nurses who can do so on your behalf. They act as an extension of your practice, allow the use of customized instructions that you choose, and are available to respond to your patients 24/7.
Remote Patient Monitoring. Remote patient monitoring (RPM) is a boon to the observation and care of chronically ill patients. RPM devices can be worn by them while they’re at home, and our triage nurses can analyze the data that these devices record. When a patient’s vital signs indicate a potential health complication, a nurse will reach out to notify them and your providers.
Do You Need Nurse Triage Assistance?
The exceptional care provided by our nurses is a testament to their dedication and professionalism. Effective communication, empathy, and compassion are essential components of health care, and it’s clear from the auditor that our nurse in this triage assessment exemplified these qualities. These kinds of interactions are what improve patient health outcomes, and we’re proud to offer solutions with this focus.
If your team would like to implement a program that includes some or all of the solutions detailed above, contact us today to learn more.
About TriageLogic
TriageLogic is a URAC-accredited, physician-led provider of top-quality nurse telehealth technology, remote patient monitoring, and medical call center solutions. Founded in 2007, the TriageLogic Group now serves more than 22,000 physicians and covers over 42 million lives nationwide.
