Triaging of patients
Triaging of patients refers to the process of evaluating or ranking sick or injured people depending on their circumstances due to a lack of appropriate resources to tackle their situations all at once. The procedure is being used in a variety of settings, including mass disasters where immediate judgments on transporting victims to hospitals are required. It can also be used in overcrowded emergency departments and walk-in clinics to identify people who need to be seen right away by medical professionals.
Disparities in the healthcare sector
The disparities in the healthcare sector largely affect the overall improvements in the quality of healthcare for the larger population. Disparities result in an increase in healthcare costs due to economic losses linked to premature deaths and a decline in productivity among the discriminated populations (Pera & Van, 2005). Disparities in healthcare are as a result of complex factors such as lower levels of education, poor living conditions, proximity to healthcare institutions, and overall socioeconomic status. In order to reduce the negative results being witnessed in the healthcare sector, several measures should be taken to do away with racial biasness. The healthcare practitioners need to be trained on the prevalence of disparities in the sector in which they are involved in (White & Zimbelman, 2005). Policies and intervention measures aimed at promoting equality and health choices should be advanced at different levels such as in schools, homes, religious institutions, and workplaces.
Protocols and policies guiding direct patient triaging
Categorization rules
Simple triage is a form of triage that is applied in cases of accidents or mass-casualties so as to sort out patients based on the cases that call for critical attention and those that can be handled later. This step can be initiated before a means of transporting the patients to the nearest health facility is made available. After the first assessment has been undertaken by the medical practitioners, each of the patients is given a label of identity using either a colored tape or marker pens. The markers should be easily identifiable for the healthcare professionals in regards to the assessment findings and the priority in terms of the needs of the patients.
Triage tags are prefabricated labels that are attached to each of the patient so as to identify them, carry the records of the findings of the assessment, track the progress of the patients, and locate any additional hazards. Theses tags must be used appropriately so as not to confuse the different needs of the patients.
Advanced triage should be applied in cases where the medical practitioners have come to a conclusion that the available medical resources cannot be sufficient to treat those under very critical conditions. In some cases, the healthcare service providers may come to an agreement that the patient cannot survive their injuries hence no need to waste resources on them (Lachman, 2009). Under extreme circumstances, the care and treatment given to some people who have very limited chances of survival may be deemed as lowering the chances of those who are likely to survive by denying them resources. This form of triage can be applied in cases such as mass shootings, volcanic eruptions, terrorist attacks, tornadoes ad earthquakes.
Reserve triage rule is the situation in which the process of triaging is used to discharge patients in situations in which the medical systems are stressed. The process is used in cases where many new patients are to be admitted in a medical facility with limited resources. This is mainly applied during natural disasters.
Specific systems
There are two forms of systems scoring that can be applied. These include the Triage Revised Trauma Score (TRTS) and the Injury Severity Score (ISS). These systems allow the healthcare service providers to assign various degrees to the triages.
Under practical applied triage, the first responders apply the Patient Assist Method (PAM) so as to quickly establish the casualty collection point in cases of emergencies.
Moral and ethical challenges for nurses
Triaging of patients has ethical and moral implications due to the fact that treatment of patients is delayed intentionally or withheld from them. The role of bioethical concerns on triage processes cannot be ignored when history comes into play (Pozgar, 2012). Triaging of patients has continued to evolve over the years even as healthcare systems in the developed countries continue to adopt advance measures aimed at mitigating expected pandemics.
Conclusion
Triaging of patients can be viewed as an unethical or ethical practice based on the manner in which it is applied. The practice may become inevitable in some situations such as emergencies. The process can be used ethically so as to properly handle patients based on their personal needs after assessment.
References
Lachman, V. D. (2009). Ethical challenges in health care: Developing your moral compass. New York: Springer Pub.
Pera, S. A., & Van, T. S. (2005). Ethics in health care. Lansdowne, South Africa: Juta.
Pozgar, G. D. (2012). Legal and ethical issues for health professionals. Sudbury: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
White, B. C., & Zimbelman, J. A. (2005). Moral dilemmas in community health care: Cases and commentaries. New York: Pearson/Longman.
