As thousands of holidaymakers flock to the South Coast, the public is being urged to “think twice” about visiting the emergency department if they can wait to be treated by a doctor.
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To help reduce holiday queues and wait times in the ED, the Southern NSW Health District has released details of its triage system.
“When a patient presents to emergency, they are categorised – triaged – by the Triage Nurse, according to the severity of the injury or illness,” a spokesperson said.
“The Triage Nurse is experienced in assessing your condition and ask you a number of questions to prioritise your care soon after your arrival and, depending on the severity of your injury or illness, may commence treatment immediately.
“The Triage Nurse allocates every patient a Triage category. There are five categories and every NSW Hospital uses.”
The five categories are:
- Category 1: Any condition that needs immediate medical treatment eg cardiac arrest resuscitation, serious wound
- Category 2: Patients who need to have treatment within 10 minutes and are categorised as having imminent life-threatening illnesses, eg heart attack, stroke or difficulty in breathing.
- Category 3: People who need to have treatment within 30 minutes, eg fractures, migraines or any condition that could potentially move to Category 2.
- Category 4: People who can wait at least an hour eg foreign bodies in eye.
- Category 5: Patients with minor injuries that could be seen by their local doctor.
“Please think twice about coming to the Emergency Department if you could wait to be treated by a doctor,” the spokesperson said.
“Remember, there may be someone who has a life-threatening illness being treated as you wait.”
The health district visiting healthengine.com.au to find a GP in your area, or calling the GP Helpline on 1800 022 222.
In case of an emergency, call NSW Ambulance on 000.
