Registered Nurse Triage

About This Role

This role involves performing care coordination and professional nursing functions to assess the severity of patients' health concerns. The Triage Nurse uses established adult and pediatric telephone protocols and clinical algorithms to determine appropriate patient dispositions, including emergency care referrals, clinic provider appointments, or triage nurse clinic services. The RN also supports providers by triaging walk-in patients, ensuring timely assessment and appropriate care coordination.

Responsibilities

• Manage nurse-directed patient telephone calls and calls from walk-in patients requesting health care services
• Evaluate and assess patient's health care needs based on patient's signs and symptoms
• Obtain appropriate input and direction from the provider as needed to determine the best clinical course of action and recommendations for specific patient health care needs
• Coordinate and schedule same-day and walk-in appointments on the provider schedule
• Maintain a nurse-only schedule
• Assist providers with special procedures as needed
• Manage prescription refills per protocol
• Provide clinical support on the floor as needed to ensure adequate coverage and continuity of patient care
• Serve as a clinical resource and professional role model for other nursing staff
• Prioritize work tasks and services to ensure timely and efficient completion
• Maintain accurate, clear, and concise documentation, including progress notes, problem lists, and medication lists, in accordance with clinical and organizational standards
• Communicate appropriately and tactfully with staff, consultants, patients, significant others, and the community
• Participate in staff, planning, in-service, and other meetings as needed
• Administer medications and perform medical and nursing procedures as ordered within the scope of practice
• Document symptoms/complaints, nursing assessment, advice provided, and patient/caller response
• Follow policies, procedures, and protocols to ensure consistency and departmental effectiveness as well as improve health care outcomes of patients/callers and their access to appropriate health care
• Complete all patient-related documentation, including prior authorizations, home health forms, and other required medical paperwork in a timely and accurate manner
• Provide patient education, for example, on chronic disease, preventive care, and family planning
• Participate in quality improvement programs
• Assure that pertinent medical information is forwarded to proper departments as needed for continuity of patient care
• Document in electronic health record (EHR), triage assessment, plan, implementation, and evaluation, follow-up