Digital Anticipatory Protocols at Triage to Improve ED Flow.
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Digital Anticipatory Protocols at Triage.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Length of Stay, Emergency Department Crowding, Emergency Department Patient, Emergency Department Triage. Basic parameters: from 18 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Switzerland
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
Implementing Digital Anticipatory Protocols at Triage to Improve Emergency Department Flow: A Before-After Study Protocol
Overview
This study aims to evaluate a pre-post intervention adding an early management decision at the end of the triage process to improve patient throughput. The intervention consists of adding digital checkboxes to the electronic triage system, providing nurses with formalized options for anticipated management based on patient acuity. The study compares a pre-intervention phase (May 1st to July 31st, 2026) with a post-intervention phase (May 1st to July 31st, 2027) to naturalize seasonal confounders. The primary outcome is the total Emergency Department Length of Stay (ED LOS).
Interventions
- Procedure Digital Anticipatory Protocols at Triage
The intervention consists of adding digital checkboxes to the electronic triage system. This provides nurses with formalized options for anticipated management based on patient acuity, aiming to encourage and document anticipatory actions while stimulating clinical reasoning.
Primary outcome measures
- Total Emergency Department Length of Stay (ED LOS). [Time frame: Through completion of the ED visit, up to a maximum of 72 hours.]
Secondary outcome measures (3)
- Left without being seen (LWBS) [Time frame: Through completion of the ED visit, up to a maximum of 72 hours.]
- 30-day mortality [Time frame: Up to 30 days post-ED visit]
- Intesive Care Unit (ICU) transfers [Time frame: Up to 7 days post-ED visit]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- All patients over 18 years who registered at the admission desk during the study period.
Exclusion criteria
- Arrival by emergency medical services (ambulance or helicopter)
- Patient trajectory bypassing the standard nurse-led triage process
- Patient directly referred to another service of the hospital after triage (gynecology, ophthalmology, etc.).
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: Yes
Study design
- Observational model
- Cohort
Study locations
Switzerland · 1 center
- Fribourg Cantonal Hospital — Villars-sur-Glâne
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07726108 · Req-2026-00230