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Graversen DS, Pedersen AF, Christensen MB, Folke F, Huibers L. Factors associated with undertriage and overtriage in telephone triage in Danish out-of-hours primary care: a natural quasi-experimental cross-sectional study of randomly selected and high-risk calls. BMJ Open 2023; 13:e064999. [PMID: 36940945 PMCID: PMC10030474 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-064999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/22/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES We aim to explore undertriage and overtriage in a high-risk patient population and explore patient characteristics and call characteristics associated with undertriage and overtriage in both randomly selected and in high-risk telephone calls to out-of-hours primary care (OOH-PC). DESIGN Natural quasi-experimental cross-sectional study. SETTING Two Danish OOH-PC services using different telephone triage models: a general practitioner cooperative with GP-led triage and the medical helpline 1813 with computerised decision support system-guided nurse-led triage. PARTICIPANTS We included audio-recorded telephone triage calls from 2016: 806 random calls and 405 high-risk calls (defined as patients ≥30 years calling with abdominal pain). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Twenty-four experienced physicians used a validated assessment tool to assess the accuracy of triage. We calculated the relative risk (RR) for clinically relevant undertriage and overtriage for a range of patient characteristics and call characteristics. RESULTS We included 806 randomly selected calls (44 clinically relevant undertriaged and 54 clinically relevant overtriaged) and 405 high-risk calls (32 undertriaged and 24 overtriaged). In high-risk calls, nurse-led triage was associated with significantly less undertriage (RR: 0.47, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.97) and more overtriage (RR: 3.93, 95% CI 1.50 to 10.33) compared with GP-led triage. In high-risk calls, the risk of undertriage was significantly higher for calls during nighttime (RR: 2.1, 95% CI 1.05 to 4.07). Undertriage tended to be more likely for calls concerning patients ≥60 years compared with 30-59 years (11.3% vs 6.3%) in high-risk calls. However, this result was not significant. CONCLUSION Nurse-led triage was associated with less undertriage and more overtriage compared with GP-led triage in high-risk calls. This study may suggest that to minimise undertriage, the triage professionals should pay extra attention when a call occurs during nighttime or concerns elderly. However, this needs confirmation in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dennis Schou Graversen
- Research Unit General Practice, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Anette Fischer Pedersen
- Research Unit General Practice, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Midtjylland, Denmark
| | - Morten Bondo Christensen
- Research Unit General Practice, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Fredrik Folke
- Emergency Medical Services Copenhagen, Copenhagen University Hospital, Ballerup, Denmark
- Department of Cardiology-Herlev and Gentofte, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - L Huibers
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus University Research Unit General Practice, Aarhus, Midtjylland, Denmark
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Collins JC, Chong WW, de Almeida Neto AC, Moles RJ, Schneider CR. The simulated patient method: Design and application in health services research. Res Social Adm Pharm 2021; 17:2108-2115. [PMID: 33972178 DOI: 10.1016/j.sapharm.2021.04.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2020] [Revised: 03/06/2021] [Accepted: 04/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The simulated patient method is becoming increasingly popular in health services research to observe the behaviour of healthcare practitioners in a naturalistic setting. This method involves sending a trained individual (simulated patient among other names), who is indistinguishable from a regular consumer, into a healthcare setting with a standardised scripted request. This paper provides an overview of the method, a brief history of its use in health services research, comparisons with other methods, ethical considerations, and considerations for the development of studies using the simulated patient method in health services research, with examples from pharmacy and other fields. Methods of analysis, mixed-methods, and the use of simulated patients with feedback are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack C Collins
- Sydney Pharmacy School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
| | - Wei Wen Chong
- Centre of Quality Management of Medicines, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | | | - Rebekah J Moles
- Sydney Pharmacy School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Carl R Schneider
- Sydney Pharmacy School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
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Graversen DS, Christensen MB, Pedersen AF, Carlsen AH, Bro F, Christensen HC, Vestergaard CH, Huibers L. Safety, efficiency and health-related quality of telephone triage conducted by general practitioners, nurses, or physicians in out-of-hours primary care: a quasi-experimental study using the Assessment of Quality in Telephone Triage (AQTT) to assess audio-recorded telephone calls. BMC FAMILY PRACTICE 2020; 21:84. [PMID: 32386511 PMCID: PMC7211335 DOI: 10.1186/s12875-020-01122-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2019] [Accepted: 03/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Background To explore and compare safety, efficiency, and health-related quality of telephone triage in out-of-hours primary care (OOH-PC) services performed by general practitioners (GPs), nurses using a computerised decision support system (CDSS), or physicians with different medical specialities. Methods Natural quasi-experimental cross-sectional study conducted in November and December 2016. We randomly selected 1294 audio-recorded telephone triage calls from two Danish OOH-PC services triaged by GPs (n = 423), nurses using CDSS (n = 430), or physicians with different medical specialities (n = 441). An assessment panel of 24 physicians used a validated assessment tool (Assessment of Quality in Telephone Triage - AQTT) to assess all telephone triage calls and measured health-related quality, safety, and efficiency of triage. Results The relative risk (RR) of poor quality was significantly lower for nurses compared to GPs in four out of ten items regarding identifying and uncovering of problems. For most items, the quality tended to be lowest for physicians with different medical specialities. Compared to calls triaged by GPs (reference), the risk of clinically relevant undertriage was significantly lower for nurses, while physicians with different medical specialties had a similar risk (GP: 7.3%, nurse: 3.7%, physician: 6.1%). The risk of clinically relevant overtriage was significantly higher for nurses (9.1%) and physicians with different medical specialities (8.2%) compared to GPs (4.3%). GPs had significantly shorter calls (mean: 2 min 57 s, SD: 105 s) than nurses (mean: 4 min 44 s, SD: 168 s). Conclusions Our explorative study indicated that nurses using CDSS performed better than GPs in telephone triage on a large number of health-related items, had a lower level of clinically relevant undertriage, but were perceived less efficient. Calls triaged by physicians with different medical specialities were perceived less safe and less efficient compared to GPs. Differences in the organisation of telephone triage may influence the distribution of workload in primary and secondary OOH services. Future research could compare the long-term outcomes following a telephone call to OOH-PC related to safety and efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- D S Graversen
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark. .,Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark.
| | - M B Christensen
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark.,Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - A F Pedersen
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark.,Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - A H Carlsen
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - F Bro
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark.,Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - H C Christensen
- Emergency Medical Services, Copenhagen, Denmark.,The National Clinical Databases (RKKP), Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - C H Vestergaard
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - L Huibers
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
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Graversen DS, Huibers L, Christensen MB, Bro F, Collatz Christensen H, Vestergaard CH, Pedersen AF. Communication quality in telephone triage conducted by general practitioners, nurses or physicians: a quasi-experimental study using the AQTT to assess audio-recorded telephone calls to out-of-hours primary care in Denmark. BMJ Open 2020; 10:e033528. [PMID: 32220912 PMCID: PMC7170599 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-033528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To compare the quality of communication in out-of-hours (OOH) telephone triage conducted by general practitioners (GPs), nurses using a computerised decision support system and physicians with different medical specialities, and to explore the association between communication quality and efficiency, length of call and the accuracy of telephone triage. DESIGN Natural quasi-experimental cross-sectional study. SETTING Two Danish OOH services using different telephone triage models: a GP cooperative and the medical helpline 1813. PARTICIPANTS 1294 audio-recorded randomly selected OOH telephone triage calls from 2016 conducted by GPs (n=423), nurses using CDSS (n=430) and physicians with different medical specialities (n=441). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Twenty-four physicians assessed the calls. The panel used a validated assessment tool (Assessment of Quality in Telephone Triage, AQTT) to measure nine aspects of communication, overall perceived communication quality, efficiency and length of call. RESULTS The risk of poor quality was significantly higher in calls triaged by GPs compared with calls triaged by nurses regarding 'allowing the caller to describe the situation' (GP: 13.5% nurse: 9.8%), 'mastering questioning techniques' (GP: 27.4% nurse: 21.1%), 'summarising' (GP: 33.0% nurse: 21.0%) and 'paying attention to caller's experience' (GP: 25.7% nurse: 17.0%). The risk of poor quality was significantly higher in calls triaged by physicians compared with calls triaged by GPs in five out of nine items. GP calls were significantly shorter (2 min 57 s) than nurse calls (4 min 44 s) and physician calls (4 min 1 s). Undertriaged calls were rated lower than optimally triaged calls for overall quality of communication (p<0.001) and all specific items. CONCLUSIONS Compared with telephone triage by GPs, the communication quality was higher in calls triaged by nurses and lower in calls triaged by physicians with different medical specialities. However, calls triaged by nurses and physicians were longer and perceived less efficient. Quality of communication was associated with accurate triage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dennis Schou Graversen
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | | | - Morten Bondo Christensen
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Flemming Bro
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Helle Collatz Christensen
- Emergency Medical Services, Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Danish Clinical Quality Program (RKKP), Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Anette Fischer Pedersen
- Research Unit for General Practice, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
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Knight K, Kenny A, Endacott R. Assessing clinical urgency via telephone in rural Australia. Nurs Health Sci 2014; 17:201-7. [DOI: 10.1111/nhs.12161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2013] [Revised: 06/22/2014] [Accepted: 06/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kaye Knight
- La Trobe Rural Health School; Bendigo Victoria Australia
| | - Amanda Kenny
- La Trobe Rural Health School; Bendigo Victoria Australia
| | - Ruth Endacott
- School of Nursing & Midwifery; Monash University; Melbourne Victoria Australia
- School of Nursing & Midwifery; Plymouth University; Plymouth UK
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