Telephone Triage and Patient Safety

The Doctors Company, a professional liability insurer for physicians, has a "Knowledge Center" on its website that contains lots of useful information.

Here is a great example.  In "Telephone Safety and Patient Triage,"  the writer explains that "implementing an effective telephone triage system in the office practice can improve physician-patient communication, confidence, service, satisfaction, and care. It can also reduce emergency department visits while ensuring access to the appropriate level of care. Telephone triage, which is just one of the ways that telemedicine is practiced, has its own risks."

The paper has some excellent recommendations for physicians on how to establish a safe and effective way to communicate with patients over the telephone.