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BMC Women's Health
Published in: BMC Women's Health 1/2024

Open Access 01-12-2024 | Triage | Research

The design of an Obstetric Telephone Triage Guideline (OTTG): a mixed method study

Authors: Farzaneh Rashidi, Masoumeh Simbar, Saeed Safari, Zahra Kiani

Published in: BMC Women's Health | Issue 1/2024

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Abstract

Background

Clarifying the dimensions and characteristics of obstetric telephone triage is important in improving the quality of services in the health system because researchers can evaluate the effectiveness of treatment, care and diagnostic measures in the form of obstetric telephone triage by developing a guideline. Therefore, this study aimed to design an Obstetric Telephone Triage Guideline (OTTG) using a mixed-method study.

Methods

The present study was carried out using an exploratory sequential mixed method study in two qualitative and quantitative phases. An inductive-deductive approach was also used to determine the concept of obstetric telephone triage. In this respect, a qualitative study and a literature review were used in the inductive and deductive stages, respectively. Moreover, the validity of the developed guideline was confirmed based on experts’ opinions and results of the AGREE II tool.

Results

The guideline included the items for evaluating the severity of obstetric symptoms at five levels including “critical”, “urgent”, “less urgent”, “no urgent”, and “recommendations”. The validity of the guideline was approved at 96%, 95%, 97%, 95%, 93%, and 100% for six dimensions of AGREE II including scope and purpose, stakeholder involvement, the rigor of development, clarity of presentation, applicability, and editorial independence, respectively.

Conclusion

The OTTG is a clinically comprehensive, easy-to-use, practical, and valid tool. This guideline is a standardized tool for evaluating the severity of symptoms and determining the urgency for obstetrics triage services. By using this integrated and uniform guideline, personal biases can be avoided, leading to improved performance and ensuring that patients are not overlooked. Additionally, the use of OTTG promotes independent decision-making and reduces errors in triage decision-making.
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Metadata
Title
The design of an Obstetric Telephone Triage Guideline (OTTG): a mixed method study
Authors
Farzaneh Rashidi
Masoumeh Simbar
Saeed Safari
Zahra Kiani
Publication date
01-12-2024
Publisher
BioMed Central
Keyword
Triage
Published in
BMC Women's Health / Issue 1/2024
Electronic ISSN: 1472-6874
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-024-03076-1

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