title: Implementation of a triage score system in an emergency room in Timergara, Pakistan.
abstract: Following implementation of the South African Triage Scale (SATS) system in the emergency department (ED) at the District Headquarter Hospital in Timergara, Pakistan, we 1) describe the implementation process, and 2) report on how accurately emergency staff used the system. Of the 370 triage forms evaluated, 320 (86%) were completed without errors, resulting in the correct triage priority being assigned. Fifty completed forms displayed errors, but only 16 (4%) resulted in an incorrect triage priority being assigned. This experience shows that the SATS can be implemented successfully and used accurately by nurses in an ED in Pakistan.
authors.affiliation: Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Islamabad, Pakistan ; Emergency Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
authors.forename: M K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Dalwai
authors.affiliation: Medical Department, Operational Research, Operational Centre Brussels, MSF-Luxembourg, Luxembourg.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tayler-Smith
authors.affiliation: MSF, Brussels Operational Centre, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Trelles
authors.affiliation: MSF, Brussels Operational Centre, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: J-P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Jemmy
authors.affiliation: Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Islamabad, Pakistan.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Maikéré
authors.affiliation: Emergency Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Twomey
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health, Timergara, Lower Dir, Pakistan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wakeel
authors.affiliation: Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Islamabad, Pakistan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iqbal
authors.affiliation: Medical Department, Operational Research, Operational Centre Brussels, MSF-Luxembourg, Luxembourg.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Zachariah
keywords: Pakistan; South African Triage Scale; emergency triage