Triage Process: Handling Patients with Ankle Injury and Urinary Symptoms

Introduction to Triage Assessment

Mark and Shawn discuss how to triage patients presenting with different conditions:

• Ankle Injury Scenario: Patient reports non-weight bearing and severe pain.
• Urinary Symptoms Scenario: Patient complains of pain while passing urine.

Handling an Ankle Injury

Shawn explains the process of triaging a patient with an ankle injury:

• Selecting Categories: Choose 'Trauma, Musculoskeletal' and specify 'Ankle' under presenting complaint.
• Pain Assessment: Patient reports pain as 10 out of 10, indicating 'Significant Pain'.
• Triage Category: Categorize as 'Very Urgent' for immediate assessment and possible IV analgesia.
• Pathway Selection: Direct patient to majors area for treatment.

Managing Urinary Symptoms

Discussing the triage approach for patients with urinary issues:

• Selecting Categories: Choose 'Triage, Illness' and specify 'Genitourinary Symptoms'.
• Pain Assessment: Patient reports pain as 4 out of 10, categorizing as 'Urgent'.
• Triage Category: Determine urgency based on symptoms like difficulty passing urine.
• Pathway Selection: Determine appropriate treatment area based on triage assessment.

Understanding these steps ensures accurate triage categorization and timely patient care.