The emergency nurse responses to triage interruptions and how these responses are perceived by patients: An observational, prospective study.
Dania M Abu-Alhaija, Kimberly D Johnson
PMID 36773514WHAT IT FOUND
Nurses' response to emergency triage interruptions showed no link to patients' confidence, competence or satisfaction, nor to nurse demographics.
Interruptions were frequent and often delayed care.
Key findings
01Of 93 triage interviews, 66 were interrupted; nurses stopped triage and responded in 43, paused in 4, and ignored in 19.
02The observed patient outcomes in interrupted interviews were errors in 6 interviews, positive care impact in 13, delay in care in 29, and no impact in 17; 7 outcomes were difficult to assess.
03No significant relationship was found between nurses' response to interruption and patients' perceived confidence (p=0.64), perceived competence (p=0.45), or satisfaction (p=0.17).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Patient and nurse surveys were self-reported and may be affected by social desirability. Patients completed surveys before leaving the emergency department and may have reported high satisfaction to please staff. The study was done in a single Midwest academic trauma centre, so the findings may not generalise to other settings. The study was powered to detect a large effect size, so smaller relationships may have been missed. Some nurses were not included in some analyses because they were not interrupted or did not respond to an interruption. Data were collected only during weekday day shifts.
Declared interests
No conflicts of interest were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that triage interruptions are harmless. The study found frequent interruptions and delays in care, and patient surveys were self-reported before discharge, so they may not capture dissatisfaction.