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Healthcare Management vocabulary · Patient Flow and Capacity

Triage

Meaning in healthcare management, with examples

/ˈtriːɑːʒ/nounCore term

In healthcare management, triage means: The quick assessment of patients when they arrive, to decide how urgently each one needs care and where they should be treated.

In Turkish: triyaj, önceliklendirme

How it is used

Used as a noun and a verb: patients are triaged by a nurse. Emergency departments use triage scales with colour codes or numbered levels. Managers watch the time to triage as a safety measure. The word is also used outside medicine, for example for sorting IT support requests.

Example sentences

  1. Every patient should be triaged within 15 minutes of arrival.

  2. The triage nurse sent him straight to the resuscitation area.

Common collocations

  • triage nurse
  • triage category
  • time to triage
  • triage a patient
  • triage system
  • emergency departmentThe hospital department that receives and treats patients who arrive with a sudden illness or injury, at any hour and without an appointment.
  • waiting timeThe time a patient has to wait for care, for example from arrival to being seen in the emergency department, or from referral to surgery.
  • patient flowThe movement of patients through a hospital or health system, from arrival and assessment to treatment, transfer and discharge, ideally without unnecessary delays.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Patient Flow and Capacity

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.