Lakenheath ER implements new triage system

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Megan Lyon
  • 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England --  Whether your baby has an upset stomach and won't stop crying, your 4-year old decided to stuff a button up her nose or your husband figured he can rewire the living room just as easily as any qualified electrician: when a loved one becomes ill or injured, we tend to err on the side of caution ... and a trip to the emergency room.

Every year the RAF Lakenheath emergency room sees more than 12,000 patients from the RAFs Lakenheath, Mildenhall and Feltwell area.

Due to the large amount of patients, the ER implemented a new triage system to prioritize patient needs.

"We have between 32 and 60 patients a day," said Maj. Nancy Eastman, 48th Medical Operations Squadron Emergency Services Flight commander. "So we incorporated a new five-level triage system. It is a national standard triage system that helps the staff identify how many resources they need."
The new system, the Emergency Severity Index, is used by staff to prioritize incoming patients, facilitate patient flow and avoid unnecessary congestion, initiate treatment and alleviate pain and anxiety while providing education and referrals to patients and families.

"The five-level triage system helps us better identify the severity of the person's injury or illness," said Capt. Karri Roman, 48th MDOS nurse manager. "Ultimately, the nurse's job is to determine who has the greatest need for healthcare at that moment and expedite them to the physician."

The system categorizes patients based on condition, type of injury or illness and the amount of resources (physicians, medication, treatment or hospital agencies) needed for treatment.

Prior to the implementation of the new system, the ER used a three-level triage system. The new system supplements the old system with two new categories: referred and resuscitation.

· Level Five (Referred): The patient will not need any resources and can safely be referred to another clinic for treatment.
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· Level Four (Non urgent): The patient will utilize one or two hospital resources.
· Level Three (Urgent): The patient will utilize many hospital resources.
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· Level Two (Emergent): The patient cannot wait to be seen or will suffer extreme pain.
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· Level One (Resuscitation): The patient is in critical condition or in extreme pain.
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The new triage standards incorporate the "Triple Aim" concept used by the 48th Medical Group to accomplish three goals: improve the health of the 48th Fighter Wing population, improve the patient experience of care and reduce the cost of care. These efforts have led the 48th MDG being named the 2009 Air Force Hospital of the Year.

Maj. Eastman added that RAF Lakenheath was leading the way in how Air Force medical treatment facilities triaged patents by being the first ER in U.S. Air Forces in Europe to implement the program.