‘Every day was a learning curve’: implementing COVID-19 triage protocols in UK ambulance services—a qualitative study of staff experiences
Services made flexible changes to triage processes using the best level of understanding available at the time, in a healthcare setting which always operates in high levels of uncertainty. Implementing triage protocols in response to the COVID-19 pandemic was a complex and fluid process which had to be actively managed by a range of front-line staff, dealing with external pressures and a heavy emotional load. Increased understanding of the way in which services and staff had to adapt, and the cognitive and emotional burden this entailed, may help in planning for future pandemics.
Authors
- John Gallanders
- Andrew Carson‐Stevens (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7580-7699)
- Mark Kingston (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2242-4210)
- Robert Spaight (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4361-5876)
- Bridie Evans (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0293-0888)
- Helen Snooks (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0173-8843)
- Timothy Driscoll (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9879-2509)
- Mike Brady (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6675-9149)
- Shona Brown
- Theresa Foster (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6395-0885)
- A Niroshan Siriwardena (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2484-8201)
- Robert Harris‐Mayes
- Fiona Bell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4503-1903)
- Elisha Miller (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4729-8572)
- Imogen Gunson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8335-3335)
- Andy Rosser (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5477-4269)
- Ronan A Lyons (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5225-000X)
- Victoria Williams (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4747-9544)
- Alison Porter (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3408-7007)
Institutions
- University of Bristol (GB)
- Swansea University (GB)
- Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust (GB)
- Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust (GB)
- East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust (GB)
- East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (GB)
- University of Lincoln (GB)
- Cardiff University (GB)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Emergency Medicine Journal
- Published
- 2025-09-17
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1136/emermed-2024-214495
- Primary Topic
- Disaster Response and Management
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00