Telephone Triage in an Emergency Central: Implementation Analysis

The Manchester Triage System (MTS) is the most widely used system in emergency services in several countries. The risk classification and triage sectors have been crucial in organizing emergency services, enabling a more efficient and humanized flow. In Curitiba-Paraná, the Manchester Risk Classification System (MRCS) was implemented in Emergency Care Units (UPA) in 2012 to improve the quality of care provided to the population. With technological advancements, the need to implement telephone triage at the Mobile Emergency Care Service (SAMU 192) Regulatory Center was identified. This article aims to demonstrate the progress of the implementation process methodology at the SAMU 192 Central, highlighting the main challenges nursing professionals face when using this technological arrangement. A quantitative analysis covering the period from January to May 2025, corresponding to the implementation of this risk classification tool for Telephone Triage and Advice (TTA), based on the Manchester Triage System – Telephone Triage and Advice (MTS TTA), shows that of the 117.066 calls, (10.38%) were "trauma" calls, totaling 12.159, and (70.70%) represented "clinical primary calls," totaling 82.771. Of the calls, 11.660 were classified using the TTA methodology, representing 9.96%, with an average of 292 classifications per nurse. The results show that implementing Telephone Triage and Counseling (TTA) at the SAMU 192 Center demonstrates significant potential for accurately defining clinical priority levels. The effectiveness of remote triage needs to be continually measured, especially concerning clinical outcomes, service resolution, and user satisfaction. Refining operational and care strategies, focusing on qualified listening and accurate risk classification, will optimize the allocation of available resources.