What are the patients vital signs?
The following question is used to determine whether the patient is dying (conceptual algorithm): • Does the patient require immediate life-saving intervention? The following questions are helpful in determining whether the patient meets level-1 criteria: • Does the patient require an immediate airway, medication, or other hemodynamic intervention? • Does the patient meet any of the following criteria: already intubated, apneic, pulseless, severe respiratory distress, SpO2 < 90 percent, acute mental status changes, or unresponsive? Research has demonstrated that the triage nurse is able to accurately predict the need for immediate interventions (Tanabe, et al., in press). Table 3-1 lists interventions that are considered life saving and those that are not, for the purposes of ESI triage. Interventions not considered life saving include some interventions that are diagnostic or therapeutic, but none that would "save a life." Lifesaving interventions are aimed at securing an airway, maint
