Keywords
triage
telemedicine
waiting time
crowding
How to Cite
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Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the effect on waiting times of video-assisted tele-triage, in which a remote emergency physician supports the triage nurse during peak hours.
Methods: In this before–after study, records of adult patients presenting to the emergency department between 16:00 and 24:00 in the pre-implementation (September–November 2024) and post-implementation (September–November 2025) periods were reviewed retrospectively. The primary outcome was door-to-triage time; secondary outcomes were door-to-physician time and the rate of patients leaving without being seen.
Results: A total of 4,812 visits before and 5,027 visits after implementation were analysed. The median door-to-triage time fell from 14 to 6 minutes and the door-to-physician time from 48 to 37 minutes (p < 0.001 for both). The rate of leaving without being seen decreased from 4.1% to 2.6%. There was no significant change in the undertriage rate.
Conclusion: Video-assisted tele-triage may shorten waiting times during peak hours without reducing safety. The results need to be confirmed in multicentre studies.
References
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Sun BC, Hsia RY, Weiss RE, Zingmond D, Liang LJ, Han W, et al. Effect of emergency department crowding on outcomes of admitted patients. Ann Emerg Med. 2013;61(6):605-11.
Gilboy N, Tanabe P, Travers D, Rosenau AM. Emergency Severity Index (ESI): a triage tool for emergency department care, version 4. Implementation handbook 2012 edition. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 2011.
Hollander JE, Carr BG. Virtually perfect? Telemedicine for Covid-19. N Engl J Med. 2020;382(18):1679-81.
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