FRONTLINE HEALTH PROVIDERS COMPETENCE IN TRIAGING AT EMERGENCY DEPARTMENTS OF HEALTH FACILITIES IN KAKAMEGA COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

Triaging is characterized as assigning patients a priority based on the severity of their disease and giving the majority of patients the best treatment possible in the shortest amount of time feasible. Long waiting times in the emergency room is a problem in most hospitals in the world. Some of the health facilities have no Emergency Department where triaging can be done. In developing Countries Triage in Emergency Department consist of a weak link. The study's objective was to evaluate frontline health providers’ competence in triaging at the Emergency Departments. Study objectives were; to assess triage competence among frontline health providers, to determine the health provider factors influencing triaging and to examine the health institutional factors influencing triaging at the emergency departments. Selected hospitals in Western Kenya's Kakamega County served as the study's sites.; a descriptive cross section design was adopted. Simple random sampling technique was used to involve all health care providers to include doctors, nurses and clinical officers. The study participants were 183 healthcare professionals operating inn emergency unit. Fissures Equation et al. was used to arrive at the sample volume. Quantitative information was gathered via a pretested personal questionnaire. Data was input and coded. into Excel files that have been cleaned and examined using a statistical program of version for social sciences 24. Chi square, fissures In the data analysis, precise, P value, frequency, mean, and percentages were used.. The study findings revealed that high competency was observed in identification of a patient with respiratory distress 89%, assess patient for temperature 68.3% and collaboration with physician to give emergency drugs. Low skills were observed insertion of cervical collar 61.2% and performing oropharyngeal and nasopharyngeal airway 73.2%. More than 74.9%. of the responders had employment in Emergency Department for less than five years and most of them were not flexible to work in the department at a P value of < 0.07.Health facility factors that influenced triaging included shortage of staff P value < 0.001, lack of training P value of< 0.001 and lack of guidelines and policies that support triaging P value of < 0.007. Therefore, the researcher recommended that, the hospital management to ensure training opportunities for staff on Three levels of life support: Basic, Advanced Cardiac, and Advanced Trauma Sustain Life. The hospital management to look into deployment of staff with experience in emergency departments to mentor the less experienced. The National and County Government management to consider human resource issues like formulation of guidelines, staffing and availability of equipment that support triage.