When a patient calls a medical practice or emergency room, chances are they’re experiencing great pain or discomfort. They may even be stressed or panicking. By adding a nurse triage service patients will always receive the care and attention they deserve in a timely manner.
Leveraging the power of a ‘TTN’ will also save you time by freeing up medical resources, allowing in-house doctors and staff to devote more time to in-person interactions. Your patient will get to speak with a licensed nurse who can determine the best course of action, based on your guidelines ( and the Barton-Schmitt Protocol ) while putting the patient’s mind at ease. As a result, deploying triage nurse call answering can improve patient outcomes, and maintain satisfactory customer service.
Nurse Triage and How it Works
A nurse triage refers to a medical call center that can be managed within the medical facility or outsourced to a third-party medical answering service provider, such as Call 4 Health. Services can be provided on evenings, weekends, or 24/7 so you can rest easy knowing that we’re always available and ready to help.
Accidents and illness don’t only occur between regular business hours, so a triage nurse allows patients to receive consistent care, even when a doctor isn’t available.
The telephone service is generally managed by a licensed nurse with the training and expertise needed to gather information, provide medical advice when needed, and advise the next course of action. This could be a standard response, such as scheduling an appointment with the physician. Or if the symptoms are serious or life-threatening, the nurse will advise the patient to head to the nearest emergency room (ER) or call 911. The triage nurse should have the proper training to make the right decision. By exhibiting a combination of skill and compassion, the licensed nurse can maintain patient satisfaction.
How it Works
- A patient calls the nurse triage and speaks to a licensed nurse. During the call, the nurse must determine the patient’s needs.
- After gathering valuable information, such as the patient’s medical history and symptoms, the nurse will determine the next level of care.
- Once the call has been completed and the patient received proper assistance, the nurse will document the encounter to be reviewed by the medical facility.
A medical call service is a reliable solution for hospitals, community clinics, medical universities, and small physician practices. For example, our pediatric nurse triage would be a great option for a small pediatric facility.
Nurse triage call answering services can be a valuable, cost-effective solution for any care-providing facility. Studies have shown that medical facilities without a nurse triage reported delays in patient care, particularly for those in need of urgent care, and decreased patient satisfaction.
Gold Standard Barton-Schmitt Protocol
In general, triage nurses follow the doctor’s specific instructions, but to ensure consistent quality, it’s important that the nurse follow standardized protocols, as well. For example, Call 4 Health uses Schmitt-Thompson telephone triage protocols. These guidelines are used by 90% of medical call centers and are widely considered the “gold standard protocols.” They provide information on how to handle pediatric nurse triage calls, as well adult calls.
Each year, these guidelines are updated and reviewed by a panel of medical specialists, including triage nurses and primary care physicians. Learning and understanding these protocols are important for medical call service etiquette. Not only can it uphold quality service, but it can also save medical staff valuable time by reducing unnecessary patient visits.
Reduced ER Admissions
Nurse triage for hospitals is highly useful in preventing unnecessary – and very costly – patient ER visits. Most calls that come through are not urgent and can be handled by providing information. Many calls simply require at-home care, which the licensed nurse can advise. However, there are situations where patients cannot get through to a medical professional and make the costly decision of immediately heading to the ER.
Call4 Health Can Help
Nurse triage services help you provide timely care to those who need it while ensuring that the facility is also running smoothly. With our nurse triage call answering service, your care facility will save time by being able to provide quality information to patients over the phone and ultimately streamlining your in-person visits. This call answering service will also save you money by reducing the number of patients who leave your facility due to excessive wait times and other unpleasant experiences.
Give us a call today at (855)244-3258 to see how we can assist you!
Founded after a personal, heart-wrenching incident more than 20 years ago, Call 4 Health has gone from solely offering after-hours answering services to being a top-rated, complete communications BPO for healthcare facilities throughout the country.
