Telephone Triage and Consultation Skills 20 November 2024

Course Overview

This course provides healthcare professionals with essential knowledge and skills to deliver safe and effective telephone triage in both home care and primary care settings. Participants will learn structured approaches to history taking, symptom assessment, and decision-making to ensure accurate and timely care recommendations. The course also covers communication techniques tailored for older adults, individuals with cognitive impairments, and those with complex medical needs. The programme is particularly valuable for clinicians working in home care, primary care, urgent care centres, and community nursing teams.

Aims:

• To provide nurses and healthcare professionals with the core competencies required to conduct effective telephone triage.
• To enhance clinical decision-making skills by using structured assessment tools .
• To ensure the safe management of patients, particularly older adults, through comprehensive telephone triage methods.

Objectives:

By the end of this course, participants will:

• Understand the principles of telephone triage and how to apply them in various clinical settings.
• Develop communication skills that facilitate rapport-building, active listening, and effective questioning during telephone consultations.
• Perform structured clinical assessments over the phone, using tools like the SOCRATES framework, and adapt them for specific conditions.
• Identify red flags and urgent cases requiring immediate escalation, ensuring patient safety.
• Manage common medical conditions (e.g., UTIs, respiratory complaints, cardiovascular concerns) in home care and primary care settings.
• Understand the legal and ethical considerations surrounding telephone triage, including documentation and safeguarding.
• Utilise available resources and local services for referral, escalation, or care coordination (e.g., safeguarding, mental health, and palliative care services).

Course Content

Introduction to Telephone Triage

• Definition and importance in modern healthcare
• Differences between in-person and telephone consultations
• Scope of practice and responsibilities
• Legal and ethical considerations

Communication and Consultation Skills

• Techniques for effective verbal communication
• Overcoming communication barriers, especially in older adults or patients with cognitive impairments
• Open-ended and closed questions
• Using ICE (Ideas, Concerns, Expectations) for better patient understanding

 Structured History Taking and  Assessments

• History Taking and Presenting Complaint
  • SOCRATES and OLDCARTS frameworks for symptom analysis
  • Adapting questions for different patient groups (e.g., frail elderly, housebound)
• Comprehensive Systems Review
  • Cardiovascular, respiratory, gastrointestinal, neurological, and musculoskeletal systems
  • Identifying red flags in telephone consultations (e.g., chest pain, new confusion)

Clinical Decision Making in Telephone Triage

• Risk Stratification and Prioritisation
• Making decisions about escalation, home visits, or self-care advice
• How to provide clear, actionable advice
• Documenting advice and arranging follow-up care

Managing Common Conditions in Home Care and Primary Care

• Managing urinary tract infections, respiratory illnesses, and musculoskeletal issues
• Symptom-based triage for older adults (e.g., falls, dehydration, cognitive changes)
• Advice on self-care and over-the-counter treatments
• When to recommend pharmacy services (e.g., Pharmacy First)

 Complex Scenarios and Special Populations

• Assessing depression, anxiety, and confusion in older patients
• When to involve mental health services and safeguarding
• Communicating with patients and families in palliative care
• Managing medication requests and symptom control over the phone
• De-escalation techniques and managing difficult calls

Practical Case Scenarios and Simulations

• Practice using structured assessments on real-life scenarios
• Peer discussion and feedback on decision-making
• Role-play exercises to enhance skills in triage, communication, and decision-making

Legal, Ethical, and Documentation Requirements

• Legal frameworks around patient data and telephone consultations
• Best practices for documenting telephone consultations and follow-up

Target Audience:

• Registered nurses, allied healthcare professionals, and primary care clinicians who provide telephone triage for home care services, general practices, community settings, and urgent care centres.

Reviews

“Highly relevant to key areas of my developing practice”

“The learning materials will be a rich source of information to support my ongoing learning. Thank you for the session.”

“A very informative and useful session.”